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View synonyms for steel

steel

[ steel ]

noun

  1. any of various modified forms of iron, artificially produced, having a carbon content less than that of pig iron and more than that of wrought iron, and having qualities of hardness, elasticity, and strength varying according to composition and heat treatment: generally categorized as having a high, medium, or low-carbon content.
  2. a thing or things made of this metal.
  3. a flat strip of this metal used for stiffening, especially in corsets; stay.
  4. a bar of this metal that has one end formed to hold a bit for driving through rock.
  5. steels, stocks or bonds of companies producing this metal.
  6. a sword.
  7. a rounded rod of ridged steel, fitted with a handle and used especially for sharpening knives.


adjective

  1. pertaining to or made of steel.
  2. like steel in color, hardness, or strength.

verb (used with object)

  1. to fit with steel, as by pointing, edging, or overlaying.
  2. to cause to resemble steel in some way.
  3. to render insensible, inflexible, unyielding, determined, etc.:

    He steeled himself to perform the dangerous task.

Steel

1

/ stiːl /

noun

  1. SteelDanielle1950MUSWRITING: romantic novelist Danielle, full name Danielle Fernande Schüelein-Steel. born 1950, US writer of romantic fiction
  2. SteelDavid (Martin Scott), Baron1938MBritishPOLITICS: politician Baron David ( Martin Scott ). born 1938, British politician; leader of the Liberal Party (1976–88); Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament (1999–2003)
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


steel

2

/ stiːl /

noun

    1. any of various alloys based on iron containing carbon (usually 0.1–1.7 per cent) and often small quantities of other elements such as phosphorus, sulphur, manganese, chromium, and nickel. Steels exhibit a variety of properties, such as strength, machinability, malleability, etc, depending on their composition and the way they have been treated
    2. ( as modifier ) See also stainless steel

      steel girders

  1. something that is made of steel
  2. a steel stiffener in a corset, etc
  3. a ridged steel rod with a handle used for sharpening knives
  4. the quality of hardness, esp with regard to a person's character or attitudes
  5. stock exchange the quotation for steel shares See also steels
  6. modifier resembling steel

    steel determination

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to fit, plate, edge, or point with steel
  2. to make hard and unfeeling

    he steeled himself for the blow

    he steeled his heart against her sorrow

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

steel

/ stēl /

  1. Any of various hard, strong, flexible alloys of iron and carbon. Often, other metals are added to give steel a particular property, such as chromium and nickel to make it stainless. Steel is widely used in many kinds of tools and as a structural material in building.


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Derived Forms

  • ˈsteeliness, noun
  • ˈsteely, adjective
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Other Words From

  • steellike adjective
  • pre·steel noun adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of steel1

before 900; (noun) Middle English stele, Old English (north) stēle; cognate with Dutch staal, German Stahl, Old Norse stāl; (v.) Middle English stelen, Old English styled edged with steel, derivative of the noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of steel1

Old English stēli; related to Old High German stehli, Middle Dutch stael
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Idioms and Phrases

In addition to the idiom beginning with steel , also see mind like a steel trap .
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Example Sentences

This stainless steel dishwasher on wheels goes where you need it to go.

Each jar was topped with a steel cone into which dogs could put their muzzles.

Brazil and South Korea aggressively expanded steel production.

The steel columns that supported the upper-deck overhang and coverings obstructed views of the action.

With a laser cutter, they cut some of the patterns into stainless steel and tested them.

As a major source for steel during World War II, Sheffield was a frequent target of bombing raids.

We made big things like steel for ships and tractors and turbines for hydroelectric plants.

Then, from a pocket inside his camouflage top, he pulled a hidden stainless steel flask.

Now the lead breacher explained how he cut through the steel doors bin Laden used to seal himself into the compound at night.

We sat in rows of grey steel fold out chairs that faced a model of the compound in Abbottabad.

A leather swordbelt, gold-embroidered at the edges, carried a long steel-halted rapier in a leather scabbard chaped with steel.

His nose was hooked and rather large, his eyes were blue, bright as steel, and set a trifle wide.

A colossal steam "traveller" had ceaselessly carried great blocks of stone and long steel girders from point to point.

He saw a large building, in front of which were long, slender strips of shining steel.

Woe to the man that first did teach the cursed steel to bite in his own flesh, and make way to the living spirit.

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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.

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