heavy metal
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heavy metal
- /ˈhɛv.i ˌmɛt.əl/ US
Where it comes from
According to the Oxford World's Classics edition of Anthony Trollope's Rachel Ray (1863), "big guns," as on a warship.
The origin of the music genre sense is often disputed; it was used by William S. Burroughs in Soft Machine and Nova Express and various music critics claim to have coined it: Sandy Pearlman, Lester Bangs and Mike Saunders.
noun heavy metals
- Any metal that has a specific gravity greater than about 5, especially one, such as lead, that is poisonous and may be a hazard in the environment. (There are many different definitions of what counts as a heavy metal; see Heavy metals for a discussion.)
-
A genre descended from rock music, characterized by the use of emphatic drumbeats, highly amplified distortion, and overall loudness; often featuring extended instrumental solos and powerful vocals.
Similar: metal
-
The first form of metal music, which arose in the late 1960s and the 1970s, and is closer to the rock music of the time than most other subgenres of metal.
Similar: metal
- Guns or shot of large size.
- Great influence or power.
Translations
Every language
noun genre of music
| Español | rock pesado, heavy metal |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 헤비 메탈 |
| 日本語 | ヘヴィメタル hevimetaru, ヘビーメタル hebīmetaru, ヘビメタ hebimeta, メタル metaru |
| 中文 | 重金屬音樂 /重金属音乐 zhòngjīnshǔ yīnyuè |
| हिन्दी | हेवी मेटल hevī meṭal |
| Português | heavy metal, metal |
| Français | heavy metal |
| Deutsch | Heavy Metal, Metal |
| Italiano | heavy metal |
| Русский | хе́ви-ме́тал xɛ́vi-mɛ́tal, мета́лл metáll |
| العربية | مُوسِيقَى الْمِيتَال mūsīqā l-mītāl, هيفي ميتال hīfī mītāl |
| עברית | הבי מטאל |
noun type of metal
| Español | metal pesado |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 중금속 junggeumsok |
| 日本語 | 重金属 jūkinzoku |
| 中文 | 重金屬 /重金属 zhòngjīnshǔ |
| Português | metal pesado |
| Français | métal lourd |
| Deutsch | Schwermetall |
| Italiano | metallo pesante |
| Română | metal greu |
| Русский | тяжёлый мета́лл tjažólyj metáll |
Talk about this word "heavy metal." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/heavy%20metal. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. heavy metal. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/heavy%20metal "heavy metal." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/heavy%20metal.Cite this
@misc{heavy_metal_2026,
title = {heavy metal},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/heavy%20metal},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
