metal

Everyday

1. Metal is a hard, shiny material like iron, steel, gold, silver, copper or aluminium. Coins, nails and keys are made of metal. tree →
2. Metal also means made of metal: a metal spoon. tree →

In the lessons

In maths: a material; things made of metal are counted or weighed; it can split things into groups to add or compare. In science: most metals conduct heat and electricity, and iron is attracted by a magnet (but not all metals are). Safety: metal pots and spoons get hot; never put metal in a microwave or into a socket. Phrases: made of metal, metal detector, heavy metal, scrap metal.

Examples

• The box holds 20 metal spoons. tree →
• A metal bar weighs 3 kg. tree →
• She sorted 15 metal and 9 plastic toys. tree →
• Each metal coin is worth 5 cents. tree →
• Gold and silver are precious metals. tree →
• A metal spoon in hot soup gets hot quickly. tree →
• A magnet picks up iron nails but not aluminium cans. tree →
• We put metal cans in the recycling bin. tree →
• Not a tinkling of a metal fringe broke the silence. tree →

Note

Homophone: «medal» (a prize) sounds almost the same. Uncountable for the material (made of metal), countable for kinds (gold and silver are metals). Describes the material; no clue to the operation. It can split things into groups to add or compare. Myth: not all metals stick to magnets.