heavy metal

Meaning

1. (countable) 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.)
2. (uncountable) 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.
3. (uncountable) 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.
4. (uncountable) guns or shot of large size.
5. (figuratively, uncountable) Great influence or power.

Synonyms

heavy metal music

crowbar

influence

iron rod

metal

🤘

power

steel

heavy tank

maletank

big iron

ability

male tank

Translations

métal lourd

metal pesado

Schwermetall

metallo pesante

metal pesado

Heavy Metal

heavy metal

metallica

heavy metal

heavy metal

Hardrock

metall pesat

βαρύ μέταλλο

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈhɛv.i ˌmɛt.əl/

Etymology

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.