炼金术 (liàn jīn shù) — (noun) alchemy; the medieval chemical science that aimed to turn base metals into gold; (noun, Chinese context) the Daoist practice of making elixirs of immortality

Definition

Examples

• 炼金术是一门古老的学问，试图把普通金属变成黄金。
  liàn jīn shù Shì yì mén gǔ lǎo de xué wèn, shì tú bǎ pǔ tōng jīn shǔ biàn chéng huáng jīn.
  Alchemy is an ancient study that attempts to turn base metals into gold.
• 在中国古代，炼金术也指炼制长生不老药的方法。
  Zài zhōng guó gǔ dài, liàn jīn shù yě zhǐ liàn zhì cháng shēng bù lǎo yào de fāng fǎ.
  In ancient China, alchemy also referred to methods of concocting elixirs of immortality.
• 这本书详细介绍了中世纪欧洲的炼金术历史。
  Zhè běn shū xiáng xì jiè shào le zhōng shì jì ōu zhōu de liàn jīn shù lì shǐ.
  This book details the history of alchemy in medieval Europe.