Jump to content

metal

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: Metal, metâl, métal, and metál
Languages (27)
English
Albanian • Aragonese • Asturian • Breton • Catalan • Czech • Danish • Dutch • French • Galician • Italian • Middle English • Middle French • Occitan • Old French • Old Spanish • Piedmontese • Polish • Portuguese • Romanian • Serbo-Croatian • Slovene • Spanish • Tagalog • Turkish • Turkmen
Page categories

English

[edit]
 metal on Wikipedia
Some well-known metallic elements

Etymology

[edit]
Etymology tree
Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon)der.
Latin metallum
Old French metalbor.
Middle English metal
English 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”).

    Pronunciation

    [edit]

    Noun

    [edit]

    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[2], volume 411, number 8884, London: The Economist Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, 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[3], Atlanta, Ga.: Warner Bros. Discovery, archived from the original on 12 March 2026:
          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 as those chemical elements, especially as a combination of several of them, 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[4], 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]
    6. (music) A category of rock music encompassing a number of genres (including thrash metal, death metal, etc.) characterized by strong drumbeats and distorted guitars.
      Synonym: heavy metal (broad sense)
      Hyponym: heavy metal (narrow sense)
      • 2019 April 11, Harmeet Kaur, “Authorities say black metal may have influenced the Louisiana church fires suspect. Here’s what to know.”, in CNN‎[5], Atlanta, Ga.: Warner Bros. Discovery, archived from the original on 13 November 2025:
        While the motive is still under investigation, authorities said that Matthews’ interest in black metal music may have influenced his behavior.
    8. (figurative, archaic) The substance that constitutes something or someone; matter; hence, character or temper.
      Synonym: mettle
    9. The effective power or calibre of guns carried by a vessel of war.
    10. (UK, in the plural) The rails of a railway.
    11. (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.

    Antonyms

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

    Derived terms

    [edit]
    [edit]

    Translations

    [edit]

    Adjective

    [edit]

    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[6], number 171, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 40:
        Top tip: Bowling gloves are for sissies, although they look metal as fuck.
    [edit]

    Verb

    [edit]

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

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

    References

    [edit]
    1. ^ Rossiter W[orthington] Raymond (1881), “Metal”, in A Glossary of Mining and Metallurgical Terms. […], Easton, Pa.: [American] Institute [of Mining Engineers], […], →OCLC.
    2. ^ Edward H[enry] Knight (1877), “Metal”, in Knight’s American Mechanical Dictionary. […], volumes II (GAS–REA), New York, N.Y.: Hurd and Houghton […], →OCLC.

    Albanian

    [edit]

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal m (definite metali)

    1. (chemistry) metal

    Further reading

    [edit]
    • Jani Thomai et al. (2006), “metal”, in FGJSH: Fjalor i gjuhës shqipe [Dictionary of the Albanian language] (in Albanian), Tiranë: Akademia e Shkencave e Shqipërisë
    • FGJSSH: Fjalor i gjuhës së sotme shqipe [Dictionary of the modern Albanian language]‎[7], 1980

    Aragonese

    [edit]

    Etymology

    [edit]

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

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal m (plural metals)

    1. metal

    References

    [edit]

    Asturian

    [edit]
    Asturian Wikipedia has an article on:
    Wikipedia ast

    Etymology

    [edit]

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

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal m (plural metales)

    1. metal

    Breton

    [edit]

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal m (plural metaloù)

    1. metal

    Mutation

    [edit]
    Mutation of metal
    unmutated soft aspirate hard
    singular metal vetal unchanged unchanged
    plural metaloù vetaloù unchanged unchanged

    Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Breton.
    All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

    Catalan

    [edit]

    Alternative forms

    [edit]

    Etymology

    [edit]

    Borrowed from English metal. Doublet of metall.

    Pronunciation

    [edit]

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal m (uncountable)

    1. (music) metal

    Further reading

    [edit]

    Czech

    [edit]

    Pronunciation

    [edit]

    Participle

    [edit]

    metal

    1. masculine singular past active participle of metat

    Danish

    [edit]
    Danish Wikipedia has an article on:
    Wikipedia da

    Etymology

    [edit]

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

    Pronunciation

    [edit]
    • IPA(key): /metal/, [meˈtˢal]

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal n (singular definite metallet, plural indefinite metaller)

    1. metal

    Inflection

    [edit]
    Declension of metal
    neuter
    gender     		singular plural
    indefinite definite indefinite definite
    nominative metal metallet metaller metallerne
    genitive metals metallets metallers metallernes

    Further reading

    [edit]

    Dutch

    [edit]

    Etymology

    [edit]

    Borrowed from English metal.

    Pronunciation

    [edit]
    • IPA(key): /ˈmɛ.təl/
    • Audio:(file)
    • Hyphenation: me‧tal

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal m (uncountable, no diminutive)

    1. (music) metal (rock genre)
      Synonym: heavy metal

    Derived terms

    [edit]
    [edit]

    French

    [edit]

    Alternative forms

    [edit]

    Pronunciation

    [edit]

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal m (uncountable)

    1. metal (music style)

    Derived terms

    [edit]

    Galician

    [edit]
    Galician Wikipedia has an article on:
    Wikipedia gl

    Etymology

    [edit]

    (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

    Pronunciation

    [edit]
    • IPA(key): /meˈtal/ [meˈt̪ɑɫ]
    • Rhymes: -al
    • Hyphenation: me‧tal

    Noun

    [edit]

    metal m (plural metais)

    1. metal
      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.

    Further reading

    [edit]

    Italian

    [edit]

    Etymology

    [edit]

      Borrowed from English metal.

      Pronunciation

      [edit]

      Noun

      [edit]

      metal m (invariable)

      1. (music) metal
        Synonym: heavy metal
      [edit]

      References

      [edit]
      1. ^ “metal” in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)

      Anagrams

      [edit]

      Middle English

      [edit]

      Alternative forms

      [edit]

      Etymology

      [edit]

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

        Pronunciation

        [edit]
        • IPA(key): /mɛˈtal/, /ˈmɛtal/, /ˈmɛtəl/

        Noun

        [edit]

        metal (plural metalles)

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

        Descendants

        [edit]
        • English: metal, mettle
        • Scots: metal
        • → Welsh: metel

        References

        [edit]

        Middle French

        [edit]

        Noun

        [edit]

        metal m (plural metaulx)

        1. metal

        Occitan

        [edit]

        Alternative forms

        [edit]
        • metau (Gascon, Provençal)

        Etymology

        [edit]

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

        Pronunciation

        [edit]

        Noun

        [edit]

        metal m (plural metals)

        1. metal
        [edit]

        References

        [edit]
        1. ^ Diccionari General de la Lenga Occitana‎[1], L’Academia occitana – Consistòri del Gai Saber, 2008-2026, page 380

        Further reading

        [edit]
        • Joan de Cantalausa (2006), Diccionari general occitan a partir dels parlars lengadocians‎[8], 2nd edition, →ISBN, page 644

        Old French

        [edit]

        Etymology

        [edit]

          From Latin metallum, see above.

          Noun

          [edit]

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

          1. metal (material)

          Old Spanish

          [edit]

          Etymology

          [edit]

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

            Pronunciation

            [edit]

            Noun

            [edit]

            metal m (plural metales)

            1. metal
              • c. 1250, Alfonso X, Lapidario, f. 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.
              • c. 1250, Alfonso X, Lapidario, 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.

            Descendants

            [edit]

            Piedmontese

            [edit]

            Pronunciation

            [edit]

            Noun

            [edit]

            metal m (plural metaj)

            1. metal
            [edit]

            Polish

            [edit]
            Polish Wikipedia has an article on:
            Wikipedia pl

            Etymology

            [edit]

            Internationalism; compare English metal, French métal, German Metall, ultimately from Latin metallum, from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon). Noun 1 sense 3 is a semantic loan from English metal.

            Pronunciation

            [edit]

            Noun

            [edit]

            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)

            Declension

            [edit]
            Declension of metal
            singular plural
            nominative metal metale
            genitive metalu metali
            dative metalowi metalom
            accusative metal metale
            instrumental metalem metalami
            locative metalu metalach
            vocative metalu metale

            Noun

            [edit]

            metal m pers

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

            Declension

            [edit]
            Declension of metal
            singular plural
            nominative metal metale
            genitive metala metali
            dative metalowi metalom
            accusative metala metali
            instrumental metalem metalami
            locative metalu metalach
            vocative metalu metale

            Derived terms

            [edit]
            adjectives
            nouns
            [edit]
            adverb
            noun

            Further reading

            [edit]
            • “metal”, in Wielki słownik języka polskiego‎[9] (in Polish), Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
            • “metal”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎[10] (in Polish)

            Portuguese

            [edit]

            Etymology 1

            [edit]

            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”).

            Pronunciation

            [edit]
             

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

            Noun

            [edit]

            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
            Derived terms
            [edit]
            [edit]

            Etymology 2

            [edit]
            Etymology tree
            Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon)der.
            Latin metallum
            Old French metalbor.
            Middle English metal
            English metalubor.
            Portuguese metal

              Unadapted borrowing from English metal.

              Pronunciation

              [edit]
               
              • (Portugal) IPA(key): /ˌmɛˈtɐl/ [ˌmɛˈtɐɫ], /mɨˈtal/ [mɨˈtaɫ]
                • (Southern Portugal) IPA(key): /ˌmɛˈtɐ.li/, /mɨˈta.li/

              Noun

              [edit]

              metal m (uncountable)

              1. (music) metal; heavy metal
                Synonym: heavy metal
              Derived terms
              [edit]

              Further reading

              [edit]

              Romanian

              [edit]

              Etymology

              [edit]
              Etymology tree
              Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon)der.
              Latin metallum
              Old French metalbor.
              Middle English metal
              English metalbor.
              French métalbor.
              ▲
              Latin metallumbor.
              Middle High German metalle
              German Metallbor.
              Romanian metal

                Borrowed from French métal or German Metall.

                Pronunciation

                [edit]

                Noun

                [edit]

                metal n (plural metale)

                1. metal

                Declension

                [edit]
                singular plural
                indefinite definite indefinite definite
                nominative-accusative metal metalul metale metalele
                genitive-dative metal metalului metale metalelor
                vocative metalule metalelor
                [edit]

                Further reading

                [edit]

                Serbo-Croatian

                [edit]
                Serbo-Croatian Wikipedia has an article on:
                Wikipedia sh

                Pronunciation

                [edit]
                • IPA(key): /mětaːl/
                • Hyphenation: me‧tal

                Noun

                [edit]

                mètāl m inan (Cyrillic spelling мѐта̄л)

                1. (chemistry) metal
                  Synonym: kovina

                Declension

                [edit]
                Declension of metal
                singular plural
                nominative mètāl metali
                genitive metála metala
                dative metalu metalima
                accusative metal metale
                vocative metale metali
                locative metalu metalima
                instrumental metalom metalima

                Further reading

                [edit]
                • “metal”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2026

                Slovene

                [edit]

                Participle

                [edit]

                métał

                1. masculine singular l-participle of metáti

                Spanish

                [edit]
                Spanish Wikipedia has an article on:
                Wikipedia es

                Etymology

                [edit]

                  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”).

                  Pronunciation

                  [edit]

                  Noun

                  [edit]

                  metal m (plural metales)

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

                  Derived terms

                  [edit]
                  [edit]

                  Further reading

                  [edit]

                  Tagalog

                  [edit]

                  Alternative forms

                  [edit]

                  Etymology

                  [edit]
                  Etymology tree
                  Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon)der.
                  Latin metallum
                  Old French metalbor.
                  ▲
                  Latin metallumder.
                  Old Occitan metallbor.
                  Old Spanish metal
                  Spanish metalbor.
                  Tagalog metal

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

                    Pronunciation

                    [edit]

                    Noun

                    [edit]

                    metál (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜒᜆᜎ᜔)

                    1. metal
                      Synonym: (rare) kansa

                    Derived terms

                    [edit]
                    [edit]

                    See also

                    [edit]

                    Further reading

                    [edit]
                    • “metal”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018

                    Turkish

                    [edit]

                    Etymology

                    [edit]
                    Etymology tree
                    Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon)der.
                    Latin metallum
                    Old French metalbor.
                    Middle English metal
                    English metalbor.
                    French métalbor.
                    Turkish metal

                      Borrowed from French métal.

                      Pronunciation

                      [edit]

                      Noun

                      [edit]

                      metal (definite accusative metali, plural metaller)

                      1. metal

                      Declension

                      [edit]
                      Declension of metal
                      singular plural
                      nominative metal metaller
                      definite accusative metali metalleri
                      dative metale metallere
                      locative metalde metallerde
                      ablative metalden metallerden
                      genitive metalin metallerin
                      Possessive forms
                      nominative
                      singular plural
                      1st singular metalim metallerim
                      2nd singular metalin metallerin
                      3rd singular metali metalleri
                      1st plural metalimiz metallerimiz
                      2nd plural metaliniz metalleriniz
                      3rd plural metalleri metalleri
                      definite accusative
                      singular plural
                      1st singular metalimi metallerimi
                      2nd singular metalini metallerini
                      3rd singular metalini metallerini
                      1st plural metalimizi metallerimizi
                      2nd plural metalinizi metallerinizi
                      3rd plural metallerini metallerini
                      dative
                      singular plural
                      1st singular metalime metallerime
                      2nd singular metaline metallerine
                      3rd singular metaline metallerine
                      1st plural metalimize metallerimize
                      2nd plural metalinize metallerinize
                      3rd plural metallerine metallerine
                      locative
                      singular plural
                      1st singular metalimde metallerimde
                      2nd singular metalinde metallerinde
                      3rd singular metalinde metallerinde
                      1st plural metalimizde metallerimizde
                      2nd plural metalinizde metallerinizde
                      3rd plural metallerinde metallerinde
                      ablative
                      singular plural
                      1st singular metalimden metallerimden
                      2nd singular metalinden metallerinden
                      3rd singular metalinden metallerinden
                      1st plural metalimizden metallerimizden
                      2nd plural metalinizden metallerinizden
                      3rd plural metallerinden metallerinden
                      genitive
                      singular plural
                      1st singular metalimin metallerimin
                      2nd singular metalinin metallerinin
                      3rd singular metalinin metallerinin
                      1st plural metalimizin metallerimizin
                      2nd plural metalinizin metallerinizin
                      3rd plural metallerinin metallerinin

                      Further reading

                      [edit]

                      Turkmen

                      [edit]

                      Pronunciation

                      [edit]
                      • Hyphenation: me‧tal

                      Noun

                      [edit]

                      metal (definite accusative metaly, plural metallar)

                      1. metal

                      Declension

                      [edit]
                      Declension of metal
                      singular plural
                      nominative metal metallar
                      accusative metaly metallary
                      genitive metalyň metallaryň
                      dative metala metallara
                      locative metalda metallarda
                      ablative metaldan metallardan

                      Further reading

                      [edit]
                      • “metal” in Enedilim.com
                      • “metal” in Webonary.org
                      Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=metal&oldid=94562235"