chemicalization

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noun

The process of making something chemical, or adapting it to use chemical methods.

“the chemicalization of agriculture”

Scrabble 33

Meanings

nounchemicalization (uncountable)
  1. uncountableThe process of making something chemical, or adapting it to use chemical methods.

    the chemicalization of agriculture

    1 more example

    She would almost certainly have to be on more than one drug and almost certainly the dosages of all of them would have to be high […] So her system has to pay the price of having to adapt to such a degree of chemicalization.

    1985, R. D. Laing, Wisdom, Madness and Folly, page 22
  2. uncountablespiritualityInner conflict caused by one's initial resistance to spiritual awakening.

Origin

From chemical + -ization. The spiritual sense was used by Mary Baker Eddy (then known as Mary Baker Glover) as early as 1875, in the first edition of Science and Health: “This chemicalization, or change, often follows our explanations of science, the effect of which is that the patient recovers; disease comes to the surface during the chemicalization, like a fermenting fluid, and throws itself off, sometimes in violent perspiration, eruptions, increased secretions, and discharges." p.176. More recent use, with definition: 1906 (current) edition of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy: "By chemicalization I mean the process which mortal mind and body undergo in the change of belief from a material to a spiritual basis." p 168. In the spirituality sense, recently further popularised by Catherine Ponder.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

chemicalization. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chemicalization

MLA

“chemicalization.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chemicalization. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “chemicalization,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chemicalization.

Source: chemicalization on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.