smelter

American  

[smel-ter] / ˈsmɛl tər /

noun

1. a person or thing that smelts.

2. a person who owns or works in a place where ores are smelted.

3. a place where ores are smelted.

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smelter British  

/ ˈsmɛltə /

noun

1. a person engaged in smelting

2. Also called: smeltery. an industrial plant in which smelting is carried out

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Etymology

Origin of smelter

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English; smelt ¹ + -er ¹

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

smelter

“You can’t protect yourself unless you can make the core inputs,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said this summer at an event to celebrate the return to full production of Century’s smelter in Goose Creek, S.C.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026

But a data center was announced near one of the proposed sites, near Vicksburg, tying up electricity needed for the smelter, according to a person familiar with the operator’s decision-making.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

That equates to 48 downstream U.S. jobs for every one job at a smelter — and that includes more than 170 extrusion plants in 36 states.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026

It also expedited loans for a South Korean-backed zinc smelter in Tennessee.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026

His invention, it turned out, could also cleanse noxious vapors and particulates from smelter effluent, coal particles from mine air, and much more.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

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