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metallic. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
metallic, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
metallic in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Latin metallicus, from metallum (“metal”), from Ancient Greek μέταλλον (métallon). Equivalent to metal + -ic.
Pronunciation
- (UK, US) IPA(key): /məˈtæl.ɪk/, /mɪˈtæl.ɪk/
- Rhymes: -ælɪk
- Hyphenation: me‧tal‧lic
Adjective
metallic (comparative more metallic, superlative most metallic)
- Of, relating to, or characteristic of metal.
- Made of or containing metal.
a. 1712, William King, “Rufinus: Or, The Favourite”, in The Works of the English Poets, volume XX, page 374:[…] and, lo ! a palace towering ſeems, / With Parian pillars and metallic beams.
1878, Sir Norman Lockyer, “On Dissociation”, in Studies in Spectrum Analysis, page 167:These chemical distinctions then, to which we have referred, are quite independent of physical condition. For instance, amongst the most metallic of the metals is a gas.
- (of a sound) Harsh, as if coming from two metals striking one another.
1839, Edgar Allan Poe, “The Fall of the House of Usher”, in Tales, London: Wiley & Putnam, published 1846, page 81:No sooner had these syllables passed my lips, than—as if a shield of brass had indeed, at the moment, fallen heavily upon a floor of silver—I became aware of a distinct, hollow, metallic and clangorous, yet apparently muffled reverberation.
- (of a color) Having the appearance of being of polished metal.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
Noun
metallic (plural metallics)
- A metallic color.
2007 May 24, Karin Nelson, “Keeping Time in Cool Comfort”, in New York Times:As Robert Clergerie, whose unisex Popée shoe comes in an array of pastels and eye-popping metallics, explained the attraction, “It gives manhood to women.”
Anagrams
Occitan
Etymology
From Latin metallicus. Attested from the 16th century.
Pronunciation
Adjective
metallic m (feminine singular metallica, masculine plural metallics, feminine plural metallicas)
- metallic
Related terms
References
Further reading
- Joan de Cantalausa (2006) Diccionari general occitan a partir dels parlars lengadocians, 2 edition, →ISBN, page 644.