transmute

[ trans-myoot, tranz- ]

verb (used with or without object)

, trans·mut·ed, trans·mut·ing.

1. to change from one nature, substance, form, or condition into another; transform.

   Synonyms: alter, convert, metamorphose

transmute

/ trænzˈmjuːt /

verb

1. to change the form, character, or substance of
2. to alter (an element, metal, etc) by alchemy

Derived Forms

• transˈmutable, adjective
• transˈmuter, noun
• transˈmutably, adverb
• transˌmutaˈbility, noun

Other Words From

• trans·muta·ble adjective
• trans·muta·bili·ty trans·muta·ble·ness noun
• trans·muta·bly adverb
• trans·muter noun
• untrans·muta·bili·ty noun
• untrans·muta·ble adjective
• untrans·muta·ble·ness noun
• untrans·muta·bly adverb
• untrans·muted adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of transmute¹

1400–50; late Middle English < Latin trānsmūtāre to shift, equivalent to trāns- trans- + mūtāre to change.

Word History and Origins

Origin of transmute¹

C15: via Old French from Latin transmūtāre to shift, from trans- + mūtāre to change

Example Sentences

We are running on the energy of farmers’ labor and transmuting it into fetish object, and it feels almost beautiful on set in Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times

“For me, art is the most direct way of transmuting all types of metaphysical spaces into the default world. It resonates with people by giving them a reflection of those shared places, states, mysteries.”

From Los Angeles Times

In the process of transmuting the mid-rib of the leaf, the plant undergoes a proliferation of new vascular tissue — and avoids rotting while the rest of the leaf withers away.

From New York Times

To transmute such willful inelegance into high art would be a miracle indeed.

From New York Times

The disaffected catharsis Americans feel entitled to in their scant free time is scored by Black sound, the acoustics of Black suffering transmuted into entertainment, spectacle.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• metamorphose
• mutate