Iron Age


noun
  1. the period in the history of humankind, following the Stone Age and the Bronze Age, marked by the use of implements and weapons made of iron.

  2. (lowercase)Classical Mythology. the present age, following the bronze age; the last and worst of the four ages of the human race, characterized by danger, corruption, and toil.

  1. (lowercase) any age or period of degeneracy or wickedness.

Compare Meanings

Click for a side-by-side comparison of meanings. Use the word comparison feature to learn the differences between similar and commonly confused words.

Origin of Iron Age

1
First recorded in 1585–95

Words Nearby Iron Age

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Iron Age in a sentence

  • She spends her Iron Age alone, and would not be approached, except for the loveliness of her niece.

  • The Iron Age gave birth to all the calamities that afflict mankind.

    The Student's Mythology | Catherine Ann White
  • In this Iron Age we have advanced a step, and even sailors can now boast of having posts to their beds.

    In Eastern Seas | J. J. Smith
  • A Brahmin of the present Iron Age is quite a different ecclesiastic from what he was in the past golden age.

    The Hindoos as they Are | Shib Chunder Bose

British Dictionary definitions for iron age (1 of 2)

iron age

noun
  1. classical myth the last and worst age in the history of the world

British Dictionary definitions for Iron Age (2 of 2)

Iron Age

noun
    • the period following the Bronze Age characterized by the extremely rapid spread of iron tools and weapons, which began in the Middle East about 1100 bc

    • (as modifier): an Iron-Age weapon

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for Iron Age

Iron Age

  1. The period in cultural development succeeding the Bronze Age in Asia, Europe, and Africa, characterized by the introduction of iron metallurgy. In southeastern Europe and the Middle East the beginning of the Iron Age is generally dated to around 1200 bce, with later dates for other parts of Europe and the other continents. Although not as hard or durable as bronze, iron is a more abundant resource, and the Iron Age saw a rapid expansion of metalworking wherever the technology was introduced. See Note at Three Age system.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for Iron Age

Iron Age

The period of history, succeeding the Bronze Age, when people first learned to extract iron from ore and use it to forge tools, weapons, and other objects. The first organized production of iron objects developed in southwestern Asia shortly after 2000 b.c.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.