bronze
Americannoun
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Metallurgy.
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any of various alloys consisting essentially of copper and tin, the tin content not exceeding 11 percent.
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any of various other alloys having a large copper content.
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a metallic brownish color.
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a work of art, as a statue, statuette, bust, or medal, composed of bronze.
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Numismatics. a coin made of bronze, especially one from the Roman Empire.
verb (used with object)
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to give the appearance or color of bronze to.
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to make brown, as by exposure to the sun.
The sun bronzed his face.
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Printing.
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to apply a fine metallic powder to (the ink of a printed surface) in order to create a glossy effect.
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to apply a fine metallic powder to (areas of a reproduction proof on acetate) in order to increase opacity.
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adjective
noun
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any hard water-resistant alloy consisting of copper and smaller proportions of tin and sometimes zinc and lead
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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
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a yellowish-brown colour or pigment
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a statue, medal, or other object made of bronze
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short for bronze medal
adjective
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made of or resembling bronze
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of a yellowish-brown colour
a bronze skin
verb
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(esp of the skin) to make or become brown; tan
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(tr) to give the appearance of bronze to
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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.
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An alloy of copper and certain metals other than tin, such as aluminum.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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bronzelikeadjective
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bronzyadjective
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prebronzeadjective
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quasi-bronzeadjective
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unbronzedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bronzesimple
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bronzessimple
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have bronzedperfect
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has bronzedperfect
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am bronzingprogressive
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are bronzingprogressive
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is bronzingprogressive
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have been bronzingperfect progressive
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has been bronzingperfect progressive
Past
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bronzedsimple
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had bronzedperfect
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was bronzingprogressive
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were bronzingprogressive
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had been bronzingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing bronze
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
She watched the 20-year-old Roper identical twins provide one of Wales' stories of Glasgow so far in winning bronze medals within a couple of hours of each other.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Now, after Welsh identical twins Abigail and Emily Roper won bronze medals within a couple of hours of each other on Monday, Evans has delivered gold.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
The 2021 bronze medalist primarily works with second to fourth-graders, with a significant number coming from the L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Emily brushed aside the disappointment of finishing fourth to return to claim bronze in the uneven bars, with the iconic image of her sister cheering her from the stands.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
I eye a bronze version of the very thing we’ve been searching for, the Msaidizi.
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
This is the largest presentation of Giacometti’s plaster sculptures in the U.S.—and for those who know only his bronzes, a few of which are included in the show, it is revelatory.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 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
"The expense is in the making of the bronzes, that's why it costs a lot to have them done. Money value in the metal it is nothing," he said.
From BBC ● May 20, 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
Sculpture had always seemed a dull business—still, bronzes looked like something.
From "A Farewell To Arms" by Ernest Hemingway
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
It arrives in a thick, architectural slab, edges bronzed, interior plush but disciplined.
From Salon ● Mar. 11, 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
She posted images of city workers prying out the two figures from the bench and the bronzed Castro and Guevara being ignominiously hauled away in a bulldozer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2025
How I could lose myself for hours watching the way the sunlight teased the contours of his high cheekbones and bronzed his rebellious curls.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
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
Hyposecretion of the corticosteroids can cause Addison’s disease, which may result in bronzing of the skin, hypoglycemia, and low electrolyte levels in the blood.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
The stranger, for all his bronzing, grew pale with rage.
From In the Days of My Youth by Edwards, Amelia Ann Blanford
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
