metal

From Middle English metal, a borrowing from Old French metal, from Latin metallum (“metal, mine, quarry, mineral”), itself a borrowing from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon, “mine, quarry, metal”).

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛtəl/, Rhymes: -ɛtəl

• Audio (US); [ˈmɛɾɫ̩]:

  (file)

• Audio (UK); [ˈmɛtɫ̩]:

  (file)

• Homophone: mettle
• Homophones: medal, meddle (in accents with flapping)

metal (countable and uncountable, plural metals)

1. (heading) Chemical elements or alloys, their ores, and the mines where their ores come from.
   2. Any of a number of chemical elements in the periodic table that form a metallic bond with other metal atoms; generally shiny, somewhat malleable and hard, often a conductor of heat and electricity.
      • 2014 April 21, “Subtle effects”, in The Economist‎^[1], volume 411, number 8884, archived from the original on 26 March 2019:

        Manganism has been known about since the 19th century, when miners exposed to ores containing manganese, a silvery metal, began to totter, slur their speech and behave like someone inebriated.

      • 2023 December 27, Mindy Weisberger, “Ancient bricks baked when Nebuchadnezzar II was king absorbed a power surge in Earth’s magnetic field”, in CNN‎^[2]:

        Earth is surrounded by a magnetosphere — an invisible bubble of magnetism generated by the powerful churning of molten metals at Earth’s core.

   4. Any material with similar physical properties, such as an alloy.
      • 1879, R[ichard] J[efferies], chapter 1, in The Amateur Poacher, London: Smith, Elder, & Co., […], →OCLC:

        But then I had the flintlock by me for protection. ¶ There were giants in the days when that gun was made; for surely no modern mortal could have held that mass of metal steady to his shoulder. The linen-press and a chest on the top of it formed, however, a very good gun-carriage; and, thus mounted, aim could be taken out of the window […].

   5. (astronomy) An element which was not directly created after the Big Bang but instead formed through nuclear reactions; any element other than hydrogen and helium.
      • 2003, Michael A. Seeds, Astronomy: The Solar System and Beyond, Thomson Brooks/Cole, →ISBN:

        Most of the matter in stars is hydrogen and helium, and the metals (including carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and so on) were cooked up inside stars.

      • 2008, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Geochemical Society, Oxygen in the solar system, Mineralogical Society of Amer →ISBN

        Thus, for the remaining elements, including oxygen, the solid phase appears to be important. In fact, at a metallicity of Z=0.02, and with a gas-to-dust ratio of 100, about half of the metals — including oxygen — are contained in the solid phase.

      • 2015, Alan Longstaff, Astrobiology: An Introduction, CRC Press, →ISBN, page 350:

        Metals include oxygen and carbon which means that water and organic molecules would have been abundant in the early universe, perhaps paving the way for the emergence of life within a couple of billion years of the Big Bang.

   7. Crushed rock, stones etc. used to make a road.
      • 1922, Falls Cyril, The History of the 36th (Ulster) Division‎^[3], M'Caw, Stevenson and Orr, Ltd:

        One of the most important tasks was the metalling of the roads, and the dumping of metal beside them in parts where it was impossible to lay it, in order that work might commence with the assault. The surface of the roads was good, but only because the Division had been holding a front so wide, which made the traffic upon them relatively light.

   8. (mining) The ore from which a metal is derived.^[1]
   9. (obsolete) A mine from which ores are taken.
      • 1660, Jeremy Taylor, Ductor Dubitantium, or the Rule of Conscience in All Her General Measures; […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: […] James Flesher, for Richard Royston […], →OCLC:

        slaves […] and persons condemned to metals

3. (heraldry) A light tincture used in a coat of arms, specifically argent (white or silver) and or (gold).

   Coordinate terms: colour, stain, fur

4. (glassblowing) Molten glass that is to be blown or moulded to form objects.^[2]
5. (music) A category of rock music encompassing a number of genres (including thrash metal, death metal, heavy metal, etc.) characterized by strong drumbeats and distorted guitars.
   • 2019 April 11, Harmeet Kaur, “Authorities say black metal may have influenced the Louisiana church fires suspect. Here’s what to know.”, in CNN‎^[4]:

     While the motive is still under investigation, authorities said that Matthews’ interest in black metal music may have influenced his behavior.

7. (figurative, archaic) The substance that constitutes something or someone; matter; hence, character or temper.

   Synonym: mettle

   • 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i], page 104:

     Leonato. Well, neece, I hope to ſee you one day fitted with a husband. / Beatrice. Not till God make men of ſome other mettall then earth, would it not grieue a woman to be over-maſtred with a peece of valiant duſt?

8. The effective power or calibre of guns carried by a vessel of war.
9. (UK, in the plural) The rails of a railway.
10. (informal, travel, aviation) The actual airline operating a flight, rather than any of the codeshare operators.

    We have American Airlines tickets, but it's on British Airways metal.

• (antonym(s) of “any of a number of chemical elements in the periodic table that form a metallic bond with other metal atoms”): nonmetal

• metalling (noun)

metal (comparative more metal, superlative most metal)

1. (music) Characterized by strong drum-beats and distorted guitars. [1970s and after]
2. Having the emotional or social characteristics associated with metal music; brash, bold, frank, unyielding, etc.
   • 2008, Lich King, “Attack of the Wrath of the War of the Death of the Strike of the Sword of the Blood of the Beast”, in Toxic Zombie Onslaught:

     The beast will destroy everything in his path
     With this song on the upcoming brawl
     It sure is a long one and tough to pronounce but
     It's the most metal title of all

   • 2012 August, “Tested Bowling Balls”, in Front‎^[5], number 171, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 40:

     Top tip: Bowling gloves are for sissies, although they look metal as fuck.

• heavy metal

metal (third-person singular simple present metals, present participle metaling or metalling, simple past and past participle metaled or metalled)

1. To make a road using crushed rock, stones etc.

metal m (definite metali)

1. (chemistry)

• “metal”, in FGJSH: Fjalor i gjuhës shqipe [Dictionary of the Albanian language] (in Albanian), 2006
• FGJSSH: Fjalor i gjuhës së sotme shqipe [Dictionary of the modern Albanian language]‎^[6], 1980

From Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon).

metal m (plural metals)

1. metal

• Bal Palazios, Santiago (2002) “metal”, in Dizionario breu de a luenga aragonesa, Zaragoza, →ISBN

From Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon).

metal m (plural metales)

1. metal

metal m (plural metaloù)

1. metal

g=m

• heavy-metal

Borrowed from English metal. Doublet of metall.

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈme.təl]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈme.tal]

metal m (uncountable)

1. (music) metal

• “metal”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007

• IPA^(key): [ˈmɛtal]

metal

1. masculine singular past active participle of metat

From Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon, “metal, mine”).

• IPA^(key): /metal/, [meˈtˢal]

metal n (singular definite metallet, plural indefinite metaller)

1. metal

• “metal” in Den Danske Ordbog
• “metal” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog

Borrowed from English metal.

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛ.təl/

• Audio:

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• Hyphenation: me‧tal

metal m (uncountable)

1. (music) metal (rock genre)

   Synonym: heavy metal

• metalband

• metaal

• métal

• IPA^(key): /me.tal/

• Audio (Switzerland):

  (file)

metal m (uncountable)

1. metal (music style)

• metal chrétien

• IPA^(key): /mɪˈtal/

metal m (plural metais)

1. De pouco lle sirve seu duro metal que o tempo e o tempo virá a derreter.

   His hard metal is of little use to him as time and time will come to melt.

• “metal”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, 2012–2025

Borrowed from English metal.

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛ.tal/^[1]
• Rhymes: -ɛtal
• Hyphenation: mè‧tal

metal m (invariable)

1. (music) metal

   Synonym: heavy metal

• metallaro

• malte

• matall, mataylle, metail, metaille, metall, metalle, metel, metell, metelle, mettall, mettel

Borrowed from Old French metal, from Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon).

• IPA^(key): /mɛˈtaːl/, /ˈmɛtal/, /ˈmɛtəl/

metal (plural metalles)

1. metal (class of elements)
2. metalwork (metal item)
3. (mining) metal, ore
4. (heraldry, rare) metal (class of tinctures)

• English: metal, mettle
• Scots: metal
• → Welsh: metel

• “metal, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

metal m (plural metaulx)

1. metal

• metau

From Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon). Attested from the 12th century.^[1]

• Audio (Béarn):

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metal m (plural metals)

1. metal

• metallic
• metallurgia

• Joan de Cantalausa (2006) Diccionari general occitan a partir dels parlars lengadocians‎^[7], 2 edition, →ISBN, page 644.

From Latin metallum, see above.

metal oblique singular, m (oblique plural metaus or metax or metals, nominative singular metaus or metax or metals, nominative plural metal)

1. metal (material)

Borrowed with apocope from Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon).

• IPA^(key): /meˈtal/

metal m (plural metales)

1. metal
   • c. 1250, Alfonso X, Lapidario, 2r:

     Et es grand marauilla que el fierro que uence todos los otros metales por fortaleza que a en ſi uence lo eſta piedra por ſu ṕṕedat.

     And it is a great marvel that iron, which defats all other metals due to the strength it has, is defeated by this stone due to its property.

   • Idem, f. 21v.

     Et otroſſi ſi lo mezclan con eſtanno torna negro. ⁊ ſi con plata lo mezclan recibe la blancura della ⁊ aſſi faz con cada metal.

     And also, if they mix it with tin it becomes black, and if they mix it with silver it receives whiteness from it, and likewise with every metal.

• Spanish: metal

• IPA^(key): /meˈtal/

metal m (plural metaj)

1. metal

• metàlich

Internationalism; compare English metal, French métal, German Metall, ultimately from Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon). Sense 3 is a semantic loan from English metal.

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛ.tal/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛtal
• Syllabification: me‧tal

metal m inan (related adjective metalowy)

1. (chemistry) metal (atomic element or material made of such atoms)

   Antonym: niemetal

2. (heraldry) metal (light tincture used in a coat of arms, specifically argent (white or silver) and or (gold))
4. metal (style of music)

metal m pers

1. (music, slang) metalhead, metaller, metallist (one who listens to heavy metal music)

   Synonyms: heavymetalowiec, metalowiec

• metal in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• metal in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese metal, from Old Spanish metal, from Old Catalan metall, matall, from Latin metallum (“metal, mine, quarry, mineral”), from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon, “mine, quarry, metal”).

• Rhymes: -al, -aw
• Hyphenation: me‧tal

metal m (plural metais)

1. (chemistry) metal (any of a number of elements that form a metallic bond with other metal atoms)

   Antonyms: não-metal, ametal

2. metal (any of a number of a number of hard but malleable materials consisting of metallic atoms)
3. (poetic) money; wealth; riches

   Synonyms: riqueza, dinheiro

4. (heraldry) white (argent) or yellow (or) tincture on a coat of arms
5. (music, usually in the plural) brass instrument

• metálico

Unadapted borrowing from English metal.

metal m (uncountable)

1. (music) metal; heavy metal

   Synonym: heavy metal

Borrowed from French métal or German Metall.

• IPA^(key): /meˈtal/

metal n (plural metale)

1. metal

• metalic

• “metal”, in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language) (in Romanian), 2004–2025

• IPA^(key): /mětaːl/
• Hyphenation: me‧tal

mètāl m inan (Cyrillic spelling мѐта̄л)

1. (chemistry) metal

   Synonym: kovina

• “metal”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2025

métał

1. masculine singular l-participle of metáti

Inherited from Old Spanish metal, from Old French métal or Old Occitan metall, these from Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon, “mine, quarry, metal”).

• IPA^(key): /meˈtal/ [meˈt̪al]

• Audio (Colombia):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: me‧tal

metal m (plural metales)

1. metal
2. (heraldry) metal
3. (music) metal

• “metal”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 10 December 2024

• mital — obsolete

Borrowed from Spanish metal, from Old Spanish metal, from Old French métal or Old Occitan metall, these from Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon, “mine, quarry, metal”).

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /meˈtal/ [mɛˈt̪al]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: me‧tal

metál (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜒᜆᜎ᜔)

1. metal

   Synonym: (rare) kansa

• “metal”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018

From French métal.

• IPA^(key): /me.tal/

• Audio:

  (file)

metal (definite accusative metali, plural metaller)

1. metal

• “metal”, in Turkish dictionaries, Türk Dil Kurumu
• Ayverdi, İlhan (2010) “metal”, in Misalli Büyük Türkçe Sözlük, a reviewed and expanded single-volume edition, Istanbul: Kubbealtı Neşriyatı

• Hyphenation: me‧tal

metal (definite accusative metaly, plural metallar)

1. metal

• “metal” in Enedilim.com
• “metal” in Webonary.org