- [uncountable] a strong, hard metal that is made of a mixture of iron and carbon
- the iron and steel industry
- The frame is made of steel.
- Small steel plates were attached to the front and back of the bone.
- The bridge is reinforced with huge steel girders.
Homophones steal | steelsteal steel/stiːl//stiːl/- steal verb
- Lock your bike up so that nobody can steal it.
- steal noun
- It could be the biggest steal in financial history.
- steel noun
- The best kitchen knives are made from stainless steel.
- steel verb
- They had to steel themselves to watch their cherished work being destroyed.
Extra ExamplesTopics Physics and chemistryb2- building in steel and aluminium
- the advantages of building in steel and glass
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- solid
- forged
- galvanized
- …
- make
- manufacture
- produce
- …
- sheet
- industry
- manufacture
- …
- in steel
- [uncountable] the industry that produces steel
- Steel used to be important in South Wales.
- steel workers
- a steel town
- The factories and steel mills have now almost disappeared.
- [countable] a long, thin, straight piece of steel with a rough surface, used for rubbing knives on to make them sharp
- [uncountable] (old use or literary) weapons that are used for fighting
- the clash of steel
Word OriginOld English stȳle, stēli, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch staal, German Stahl, also to the noun stay sense (2). The verb dates from the late 16th cent.
Idioms
See steel in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee steel in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishof steel
- having a quality like steel, especially a strong, cold or hard quality
- She felt a hand of steel (= a strong, firm hand) on her arm.
- You need a cool head and nerves of steel (= great courage).
- There was a hint of steel in his voice (= he sounded cold and firm).
Check pronunciation:
steel