Taber's Medical Dictionary
alkali
(al′kă-lī″ )
To hear audio pronunciation of this topic, purchase a subscription or log in.pl. alkalis, alkalies [Ult. fr. Arabic al-qalī, ashes of salt wort]
A strong base, esp. the metallic hydroxides. Alkalies combine with acids to form salts, combine with fatty acids to form soap, neutralize acids, and turn litmus paper blue.
SEE: acid; SEE: base; SEE: pH
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Citation
Venes, Donald, editor. "Alkali." Taber's Medical Dictionary, 25th ed., F.A. Davis Company, 2025. Taber's Online, www.tabers.com/tabersonline/view/Tabers-Dictionary/756983/all/alkali.
Alkali. In: Venes DD, ed. Taber's Medical Dictionary. F.A. Davis Company; 2025. https://www.tabers.com/tabersonline/view/Tabers-Dictionary/756983/all/alkali. Accessed April 4, 2026.
Alkali. (2025). In Venes, D. (Ed.), Taber's Medical Dictionary (25th ed.). F.A. Davis Company. https://www.tabers.com/tabersonline/view/Tabers-Dictionary/756983/all/alkali
Alkali [Internet]. In: Venes DD, editors. Taber's Medical Dictionary. F.A. Davis Company; 2025. [cited 2026 April 04]. Available from: https://www.tabers.com/tabersonline/view/Tabers-Dictionary/756983/all/alkali.
* Article titles in AMA citation format should be in sentence-case
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