hermeticadj.n.
/həːˈmɛtɪk/, /həˈmɛtɪk/, U.S. /hərˈmɛdɪk/ A. adj.
1. (With capital initial.) Pertaining to Hermes Trismegistus, and the philosophical, theosophical, and other writings ascribed to him: see Hermes n. 3.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > [adjective] > relating to author of
hermetical1605
hermetic1676
Hermaic1678
Hermaical1678
the mind > mental capacity > philosophy > ancient Greek philosophy > [adjective] > of Neoplatonism > hermetic
hermetical1605
hermetic1676
1676 I. Newton Let. 26 Apr. in Corr. (1960) II. 2 If there should be any verity in ye Hermetick writers.
1678 R. Cudworth True Intellect. Syst. Universe i. iv. 321 There may very well be some Hermetick or Trismegistick Books Genuine, though all of them be not such.
1792 T. Taylor tr. Proclus Philos. & Math. Comm. (new ed.) II. 29 His familiarity with the Hermetic Pan.
2. transferred and figurative.
a. Hence, Relating to or dealing with occult science, esp. alchemy; magical; alchemical. hermetic art, hermetic philosophy, hermetic science: names for alchemy or chemistry. Also, unaffected by external influences, recondite.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > [adjective]
curiousc1384
mystical1516
cabbalisticala1593
occult1593
hermetical1605
cabbalistic1625
hermetica1637
adeptical1662
trismegistic1678
trismegistical1678
trismegistian1694
Sibylline1817
Sibyllica1849
occultist1893
widdershins1926
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > hiding, concealing from view > keeping from knowledge > keeping from publication > [adjective]
unawnedc1175
unconfesseda1500
unpresented1523
undeclared1526
unrevealed1529
unproclaimed1570
undisclosed1571
unbetrayed1595
mystical1600
unbewrayed1605
undivulged1608
unpublished1608
irrevealed1610
tonguelessa1616
undiscovereda1616
unaffirmeda1631
unprofessed1647
unphrased1663
in poigne1710
napkined1756
unavowed1790
unsignified1809
unsunned1814
expressionless1819
inexpressed1821
unindicated1825
unblazoned1830
inostensible1843
unjournalized1843
unaverred1850
unexhibited1862
unadvertised1864
hermetic1954
a1637 B. Jonson Under-woods xliii. 73 in Wks. (1640) III With the Chimæra of the Rosie-Crosse, Their Seales, their Characters, Hermetique Rings.
1651 J. French Art Distillation v. 160 I extracted thence three drams of pure nitrous Hermetick Salt.
1651 N. Biggs Matæotechnia Medicinæ Praxeωs ⁋65 But warm'd at the Hermetick fire.
1652 E. Ashmole Theatrum Chemicum Britannicum Prolegomena sig. A4 A Particular account of the Hermetique Science.
1663 S. Butler Hudibras: First Pt. i. ii. 88 By his side a Pouch he wore Replete with strange Hermetick Powder.
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 426. ⁋2 Basilius Valentinus was a person who had arrived at the utmost Perfection in the Hermetick Art.
1790 E. Burke Refl. Revol. in France 338 As the dream of the philosopher's stone induces dupes, under the more plausible delusion of the hermetic art, to neglect all rational means of improving their fortunes. View more context for this quotation
1839 Fraser's Mag. 19 447 The hermetic or philosophical fire..is a perfectly invisible and universal essence.
1954 Ann. Reg. 1953 204 From the published texts [of the Spanish agreement with America] might be inferred the existence of certain secret clauses, guardedly described as ‘hermetic’.
1965 Listener 2 Sept. 351/2 Poems ranging from the hermetic to the directly obscene.
1966 Listener 5 May 663/2 It is hermetic music and solely concerned with problems of formal design, structure, and instrumental texture.
1972 Times Lit. Suppl. 25 Aug. 984/3 The poetry which he had written between the wars was considered hermetic by some.
b. hermetic seal, hermetic sealing: air tight closure of a vessel, esp. a glass vessel, by fusion, soldering, or welding; also applied in Surgery to a method of dressing wounds (see quot. 1886). Also figurative. Hence hermetic for ‘hermetically sealed’.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > closed or shut condition > [noun] > water- or air-pressure-tight closure
Hermes' seal1605
hermetic seal1663
watertightness1826
pressure tightness1945
1663 Bp. J. Taylor Serm. Funeral Abp. Armagh in Wks. (1831) IV. 53 Not nature, but grace and glory, with an hermetic seal, give us a new signature.
1705 C. Purshall Ess. Mechanism Macrocosm 140 Boyle has observed Water to Dilate, and contract it self..by an Hermetic Glass Bubble.
1825 J. Bentham Indications Respecting Ld. Eldon 47 The same hand..has..as if by an hermetic seal, closed all such crannies.
1886 New Sydenham Soc. Lexicon Hermetic sealing..Also, a mode of treatment of penetrating wounds of the chest or abdomen by closing them externally with collodion and scraps of lint.
3.
a. Pertaining to the god Hermes.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > deity > classical deity > [adjective] > relating to Hermes or Mercury
mercurialc1487
Mercurian1776
hermetica1891
a1891 J. R. Lowell Old Eng. Dramatists (1892) i. 17 They [sc. the Elizabethans] had the hermetic gift of buckling wings to the feet of their verse.
1951 W. H. Auden Nones (1952) 60 In fake Hermetic uniforms.
1951 W. H. Auden Nones (1952) 61 Keep well the Hermetic Decalogue.
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b. Of or pertaining to a Herma: as hermetic column = Hermes n. 1b.
B. n.
1. One skilled in hermetic art or science; an alchemist or chemist.
ΚΠ
1684 tr. T. Bonet Guide Pract. Physician ix. 319 Prepared Vitriol..alone to several Hermeticks may seem sufficient to furnish an Apothecaries shop.
2. plural. Hermetic philosophy; alchemy.
ΚΠ
1865 tr. V. Hugo Hunchback of Notre Dame ii. vii. 95 Hermetics, that sophia of all sophias.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1898; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.n.a1637