English Explanatory Dictionary

steel

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. An artificial metal produced from iron, harder and more elastic than elemental iron; used figuratively as a symbol of hardness.
  2. Any item made of this metal, particularly including:
  3. Bladed or pointed weapons, as swords, javelins, daggers.
  4. A piece used for striking sparks from flint or ferrocerium.
  5. Armor.
  6. A honing steel, a tool used to sharpen or hone metal blades.
  7. Pieces used to strengthen, support, or expand an item of clothing.
  8. A flat iron.
  9. A sewing needle; a knitting needle; a sharp metal stylus.
  10. An engraving plate.
  11. Projectiles.
  12. A fringe of beads or decoration of this metal.
adj
  1. Made of steel.
  2. Similar to steel in color, strength, or the like; steely.
  3. Of or belonging to the manufacture or trade in steel.
  4. Containing steel.
  5. Engraved on steel.
verb
  1. To treat, furnish with, or transform into steel.
  2. To edge, cover, or point with steel.
  3. To back with steel.
  4. To treat a liquid with steel for medicinal purposes.
  5. To electroplate an item (particularly an engraving plate) with a layer of iron.
  6. To sharpen with a honing steel.
  7. To steelify; to turn iron into steel.
  8. To cause to resemble steel.
  9. To harden or strengthen; to nerve or make obdurate; to fortify against.
  10. To give (something) the appearance of steel.
  11. To press with a flat iron.
name
  1. Coldbath Fields Prison in London, closed in 1877.
name
  1. A surname.
name
  1. Bridewell Prison in London, England.

Pronunciation

stēl /stiːl/ [stiːɫ] en-us-steel.ogg LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-steel.wav

Word forms

steel steels steele steeling steeled the Steel

Etymology

From Middle English stele, stel, from Old English stīele, from Proto-West Germanic *stahlī (“something made of steel”), enlargement of *stahl (“steel”), from Proto-Germanic *stahlą, from *stah- or *stag- (“to be firm, rigid”), from Proto-Indo-European *stak- (“to stay, to be firm”). Compare Scots stele, Yola stehli, German Stahl, Dutch staal.

Synonyms

cold weapon white arm firesteel striker firestriker

Related words

cast iron wrought iron

Derived words

alloy steel austenitic steel balls of steel Bessemer steel Biosteel blister-steel blister steel bright lights and cold steel bronze steel carbon steel cement steel cold steel and bright lights console steel guitar console steel guitarist crucible steel Damascus steel Damask steel draw one's steel electrosteel finger steel firesteel flowers of steel German steel granulated steel hard steel high-speed steel high speed steel high steel India steel lap steel lap steel guitar lap steel guitarist low-background steel low steel manganese steel man of steel marage steel maraging steel mild steel mind like a steel trap native steel natural steel nerves of steel nickel steel nonsteel ovaries of steel oxysteel pedal steel pedal steel guitar pedal steel guitarist phosphorus steel plasteel presteel radiosteel resteel ring of steel salt of steel semisteel Siemens-Martin steel silicon steel
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