Alkahest \Al"ka*hest\, n. [LL. alchahest, F. alcahest, a word
that has an Arabic appearance, but was probably arbitrarily
formed by Paracelsus.]
The fabled "universal solvent" of the alchemists; a menstruum
capable of dissolving all bodies. -- {Al`ka*hes"tic}, a.
[1913 Webster]