steel wool

American  

noun

1. a tangled or matted mass of stringlike steel shavings, used for scouring, polishing, smoothing, etc.

---

steel wool British  

noun

1. a tangled or woven mass of fine steel fibres, used for cleaning or polishing

---

Etymology

Origin of steel wool

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

Maintenance is straightforward: The pan is dishwasher safe, metal utensil-friendly and can handle steel wool.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 24, 2025

“Any other steel wool will scratch and etch into glass and other surfaces.”

From Seattle Times • Feb. 16, 2024

His Jewish Cuban father owned a steel wool factory; his mother, a Jewish Romanian, narrowly survived the Holocaust when her family caught one of the last ships to Cuba.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 8, 2024

The artist often uses steel wool as a paintbrush to create tiny dots of paint, in a contemporary spin on Pointillism.

From New York Times • May 15, 2023

On board were two benches, some steel wool, an old cooler, and a mound of frayed rope with one end tied to the mooring.

From "The Son of Neptune" by Rick Riordan