bronze

American  

[bronz] / brɒnz /

noun

• bronzes
  plural

1. Metallurgy.

   1. any of various alloys consisting essentially of copper and tin, the tin content not exceeding 11 percent.

   2. any of various other alloys having a large copper content.

2. a metallic brownish color.

3. a work of art, as a statue, statuette, bust, or medal, composed of bronze.

4. Numismatics. a coin made of bronze, especially one from the Roman Empire.

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verb (used with object)

• bronzes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• bronzed,
  past participle,  past
• bronzing
  present participle

1. to give the appearance or color of bronze to.

2. to make brown, as by exposure to the sun.

   The sun bronzed his face.

3. Printing.

   1. to apply a fine metallic powder to (the ink of a printed surface) in order to create a glossy effect.

   2. to apply a fine metallic powder to (areas of a reproduction proof on acetate) in order to increase opacity.

adjective

1. having the color bronze.

bronze British  

/ brɒnz /

noun

1. 1. any hard water-resistant alloy consisting of copper and smaller proportions of tin and sometimes zinc and lead

   2. any similar copper alloy containing other elements in place of tin, such as aluminium bronze, beryllium bronze, etc See also phosphor bronze gunmetal Compare brass

2. a yellowish-brown colour or pigment

3. a statue, medal, or other object made of bronze

4. short for bronze medal

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adjective

1. made of or resembling bronze

2. of a yellowish-brown colour

   a bronze skin

verb

1. (esp of the skin) to make or become brown; tan

2. (tr) to give the appearance of bronze to

bronze Scientific  

/ brŏnz /

1. 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.

2. An alloy of copper and certain metals other than tin, such as aluminum.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• bronzelike
  adjective
• bronzy
  adjective
• prebronze
  adjective
• quasi-bronze
  adjective
• unbronzed
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• bronzes
  plural

Participles

• bronzing
  present
• bronzed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• bronze
  simple
• bronzes
  simple
• have bronzed
  perfect
• has bronzed
  perfect
• am bronzing
  progressive
• are bronzing
  progressive
• is bronzing
  progressive
• have been bronzing
  perfect progressive
• has been bronzing
  perfect progressive

Past

• bronzed
  simple
• had bronzed
  perfect
• was bronzing
  progressive
• were bronzing
  progressive
• had been bronzing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will bronze
  simple
• will have bronzed
  perfect
• will be bronzing
  progressive
• will have been bronzing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of bronze

1730–40; < French < Italian, of obscure origin

Explanation

Bronze is a dull gold-colored metal that's used to make musical instruments, sculptures, and coins. If you get a bronze medal in the Olympics, you came in third place — nice job! Bronze is an alloy of copper, tin, and other metals. For a long time, pennies were made of bronze (today they use zinc). Cymbals, bells, and gongs are traditionally crafted using bronze, and you'll get tired of counting the many bronze sculptures found in most art museums. As a verb, this word is frequently used to mean "tan," so while you burn when you forget your sunblock, your cousin tends to bronze to a burnished shade of brown.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bronze bronzes bronzed bronzing

How could a civilization boasting gold and bronze masterpieces, jadeworking and silk production seemingly disappear overnight, leaving no written record or human remains?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026

Today, Istanbul remains the centre of excellence for cymbals, where a handful of brands still produce hand-hammered bronze using techniques developed more than 400 years ago.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

The rhythmic clanging of hammers on bronze echoes through the Istanbul workshop where three craftsmen are landing blows with astonishing precision to transform featureless metal discs into highly prized handcrafted cymbals.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

The 32-year-old bounced back from serious injury to celebrate a gold medal on a night when there was a silver for England's mixed 4x400m relay team and a bronze for pole vaulter Owen Heard.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026

Bass and the other archaeologists concluded the merchant captain of the ship used these broken implements as scrap bronze, which he or someone else could melt down to make brand-new tools.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

Golds, silvers and bronzes won in Para-events will, unlike with other multi-sport events, count towards the overall medal total.

From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026

In a clever piece of installation design, shelves built around the screen bring the painting’s illusions to life, displaying real bronzes, porcelains, texts and scholarly objects from Lee’s collection—modern curation fulfilling classical cultural capital.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026

Russia topped the medal table with 13 golds, 13 silvers and seven bronzes, while Mexico and Mongolia competed at a Winter Paralympics for the first time.

From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2026

GB's only previous Olympic medals on snow were bronzes - for snowboarder Jenny Jones in 2014, and freestyle skier Izzy Atkin and snowboarder Billy Morgan four years later.

From BBC ● Feb. 15, 2026

The Chola bronzes, cast in the eleventh century, include several different incarnations of the god Shiva.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

Scattered over the top of bread pudding before baking, it creates these bronzed little crackly edges that make the whole thing feel finished.

From Salon ● May 25, 2026

She has shared a before-and-after with her 59,000 followers: Her face, once splotchy with some acne scarring, is now clear, bronzed and glowing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 22, 2026

We wanted pasta that stretched and sighed, casseroles that arrived bubbling and bronzed, soups that tasted like something rescued from memory and improved by adulthood.

From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2025

Effective public health messaging – which has drilled "Slip, Slop, Slap" into their heads – competes with a beauty culture which often idolises bronzed skin.

From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2025

The dress of the young man who now stepped out on to the terrace was Indian; but his plaited hair was straw-coloured, his eyes a pale blue, and his skin a white skin, bronzed.

From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley

“They’ve had a curated set of items that they’ve gone after, so whether that be in blushes or in lips or in highlighter or bronzing categories, they’re seeing strength across the board,” Fields said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Not long ago, the “Mar-a-Lago face” seemed inescapable — a viral shorthand for an exaggerated cosmetic aesthetic marked by heavy bronzing, sharply sculpted cheeks, overly plumped lips and high-gloss polish.

From Salon ● Jan. 10, 2026

Bahder, whose expertise traditionally involves detecting lethal bronzing in palm trees, explained that the fundamental process of molecular testing is similar across different organisms, with the main difference being the DNA sequence.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 22, 2024

“He’s been applying his bronzing cream to his face. Cute couple. Look out, Melania, Trump’s got a new squeeze named Elonia Musk.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 14, 2024

The honeysuckle over Tom Watson's window was thinning under the heat and bronzing under the drouth.

From Oldfield A Kentucky Tale of the Last Century by Banks, Nancy Huston