metallic
Americanadjective
-
of, relating to, or consisting of metal.
-
of the nature of or suggesting metal, as in luster, resonance, or hardness.
metallic green; a harsh metallic sound.
-
Chemistry.
-
(of a metal element) being in the free or uncombined state.
metallic iron.
-
containing or yielding metal.
-
noun
adjective
-
of, concerned with, or consisting of metal or a metal
-
suggestive of a metal
a metallic click
metallic lustre
-
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.
“There is a chemical, metallic taste to it that makes one think it was created in some renegade CIA lab.”
From The Wall Street Journal • May 20, 2026
Rare earths are a group of 17 metallic elements that have been described as the spice of manufacturing.
From Barron's • May 13, 2026
The Vienna research team, led by Markus Arndt and Stefan Gerlich, has now extended these quantum effects to much larger metallic nanoparticles for the first time.
From Science Daily • May 11, 2026
The turn-of-the-century molds in his studio — which use botanic motifs, blossoming forms with metallic winged and floral attachments — look like desk toppers fit for an early 1900s eccentric obsessed with Darwinism and industrialization.
From Los Angeles Times • May 6, 2026
Her voice, I noticed, had that same hard metallic quality as the voice of the witch I had met under the conker tree, only it was far louder and much much harsher.
From "The Witches" by Roald Dahl
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.
