Meanings
adjectivephytochemical (not comparable)
- not comparablePertaining to the chemistry of plants.First known use 19th c.
The plants used belonged to botanical families known to have little phytochemical significance.
1985, Wade Davis, The Serpent and the Rainbow, Simon & Schuster, page 87
nounphytochemical (plural phytochemicals)
plural phytochemicals
- Any chemical substance characteristic of plants.
- Any chemical or nutrient derived from a plant source; a phytonutrient.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰuH-
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰuHyéti
- Ancient Greekφῠ́ω (phŭ́ō)
- Ancient Greekφῠτός (phŭtós)
- Ancient Greekφῠτόν (phŭtón)
- Englishphyto-
- Proto-Indo-European*ǵʰew-
- Ancient Greekχῠ́μᾰ (khŭ́mă)
- Ancient Greekχυμείᾱ (khumeíā)
- Arabicالْكِيمِيَاء (al-kīmiyāʔ)
- Medieval Latinalchēmia
- Ancient Greekχυμείᾱ (khumeíā)influ.
- New Latinchēmia
- New Latinchēmicus
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
- Proto-Indo-European*h₂élisder.?
- Englishchemical
- Englishphytochemical
Translations
Polish fitochemiczny
- fitochemicznypertraining to chemistry of plants
Russian фитохимический
- фитохимический (fitoximičeskij)pertraining to chemistry of plants
Spanish fitoquímico
- fitoquímicoany chemical substance characteristic of plants
Cite this entry
APA
phytochemical. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/phytochemical
MLA
“phytochemical.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/phytochemical. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “phytochemical,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/phytochemical.
Source: phytochemical on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.