bronze
- Metallurgy.
- any of various alloys consisting essentially of copper and tin, the tin content not exceeding 11 percent.
- any of various other alloys having a large copper content.
- a metallic brownish color.
- a work of art, as a statue, statuette, bust, or medal, composed of bronze.
- Numismatics. a coin made of bronze, especially one from the Roman Empire.
- to give the appearance or color of bronze to.
- to make brown, as by exposure to the sun: The sun bronzed his face.
- Printing.
- to apply a fine metallic powder to (the ink of a printed surface) in order to create a glossy effect.
- to apply a fine metallic powder to (areas of a reproduction proof on acetate) in order to increase opacity.
- having the color bronze.
Origin of bronze
Examples from the Web for bronze
Contemporary Examples
There was deep brown flesh, and bronze flesh, and pallid white flesh, and flesh turned red from the hot sun.
The quote appears on the bronze plaque the players touch before they take the field for home games.
A platinum plan pays 90 percent of costs; gold plans pay 80 percent; silver plans pay 70 percent; bronze pay 60 percent.
Once dried, a liquid, such as plaster, wax, or bronze, is poured in for a perfect representation of the face.
The difference in premiums between a catastrophic plan and “bronze” plan is substantial.
Historical Examples
There were bronze chariots with horses of bronze to draw them and men of bronze to hold the reins.
Buried Cities, Part 2Jennie Hall
Bronze lampholder: Five lamps hung from the branches of this bronze tree.
Buried Cities: Pompeii, Olympia, MycenaeJennie Hall
Felix, in gratitude, had this portrait of his master cast in bronze.
Buried Cities: Pompeii, Olympia, MycenaeJennie Hall
Then the artist took a separate sheet of bronze for his design.
Buried Cities: Pompeii, Olympia, MycenaeJennie Hall
These piles were stems, or trunks of trees, sharpened with stone or bronze tools.
English VillagesP. H. Ditchfield
bronze
- any hard water-resistant alloy consisting of copper and smaller proportions of tin and sometimes zinc and lead
- any similar copper alloy containing other elements in place of tin, such as aluminium bronze, beryllium bronze, etcSee also phosphor bronze, gunmetal Compare brass (def. 1)
- a yellowish-brown colour or pigment
- a statue, medal, or other object made of bronze
- short for bronze medal
- made of or resembling bronze
- of a yellowish-brown coloura bronze skin
- (esp of the skin) to make or become brown; tan
- (tr) to give the appearance of bronze to
Word Origin
Word Origin and History for bronze
n.
1721, "alloy of copper and tin," from French bronze, from Italian bronzo, from Medieval Latin bronzium. Perhaps cognate (via notion of color) with Venetian bronza "glowing coals," or German brunst "fire." Perhaps influenced by Latin Brundisium the Italian town of Brindisi (Pliny writes of aes Brundusinum). Perhaps ultimately from Persian birinj "copper."
In Middle English, the distinction between bronze (copper-tin alloy) and brass (copper-zinc alloy) was not clear, and both were called bras. A bronze medal was given to a third-place finisher since at least 1852. The archaeological Bronze Age (1865) falls between the Stone and Iron ages, and is a reference to the principal material for making weapons and ornaments.
v.
1640s, literally, 1726 figuratively, from French bronzer (16c.) or else from bronze (n.). Related: Bronzed; bronzing. Meaning "to make to be bronze in color" is from 1792.
bronze
- A yellow or brown alloy of copper and tin, sometimes with small amounts of other metals such as lead or zinc. Bronze is harder than brass and is used both in industry and in art.
- An alloy of copper and certain metals other than tin, such as aluminum.