Plural form of alkali; multiple chemical compounds that are basic rather than acidic, such as sodium hydroxide or ammonia.
From 'alkali' (Arabic al-qali, plant ashes) + English plural '-s.' Alkalis were among the first chemicals known to humans, used in soap and glass-making for millennia.
Ancient peoples didn't know chemistry, but they discovered alkalis by burning plants and using the ashes—for thousands of years, people were doing chemistry without the vocabulary to describe it!
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