metallic
Americanadjective
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of, relating to, or consisting of metal.
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of the nature of or suggesting metal, as in luster, resonance, or hardness.
metallic green; a harsh metallic sound.
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Chemistry.
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(of a metal element) being in the free or uncombined state.
metallic iron.
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containing or yielding metal.
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noun
adjective
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of, concerned with, or consisting of metal or a metal
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suggestive of a metal
a metallic click
metallic lustre
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chem (of a metal element) existing in the free state rather than in combination
metallic copper
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of metallic
1560–70; < Latin metallicus < Greek metallikós of, for mines. See metal, -ic
Explanation
Metallic things are either made out of metal or look like they are. Your metallic party dress might be covered in sparkly silver sequins. Yowza! A metallic bicycle might be unpainted chrome — made of metal, in other words. Your metallic nail polish only resembles metal, glinting and shining gold. It's also possible to taste something that reminds you of metal and get a lingering metallic taste in your mouth. Metallic comes from metal, and both are rooted in the Greek metallon, "metal or ore."
Vocabulary lists containing metallic
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.
A well-documented side effect of the drugs is called dysgeusia, which can produce an unpleasant, metallic taste in the mouth.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
He arrives at election counts wearing a metallic dustbin-shaped helmet, a silver cape and silver-and-black armour and brandishing his razor-sharp, deadpan sense of humour.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
One ballerina selected from her stash a leotard whose gray velour later read as metallic silver under the studio lights during her grand adagio.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
The material combines tungsten carbide, which provides hardness, with cobalt, which acts as a metallic binder that holds the carbide particles together.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 4, 2026
From the hall, a metallic clattering sound, doors opening, doors closing.
From "The Boy Who Dared" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
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.
