iron man

American  

noun

1. a person, as a worker or athlete, of great physical endurance who can be depended upon to perform a given task or job tirelessly.

2. a machine that performs a job formerly done by hand; robot.

3. Slang.  a dollar bill or a silver dollar.

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iron man British  

noun

1. an event at a surf carnival in which contestants compete at swimming, surfing, running, etc

2. a competitor at such an event

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Etymology

Origin of iron man

First recorded in 1610–20

Compare meaning

How does iron-man compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• ironmonger vs. iron man

Example Sentences

However, this would-be iron man recently suffered a set-back when he was arrested in the central African nation of Chad.

From BBC

An iron man, he played 10,363 consecutive snaps, a streak believed to be a league record, before being forced off the field with a torn triceps midway through Cleveland’s 0-16 season in 2017.

From Seattle Times

Rizzs, who is in his 38th season calling Mariners games, is regarded as an iron man.

From Seattle Times

The iron man started the first 141 games of the 2022 season before taking his first day off on Sept. 14.

From Los Angeles Times

“We’re not blessed with numbers, so it’s a lot of iron man football.”

From Los Angeles Times