heavy metal

noun

1

: a metal of high specific gravity

2

: energetic and highly amplified electronic rock music having a hard beat

Borrowing elements of everything from grunge to progressive rock, from gospel to heavy metal …

—David Okamoto

Examples of heavy metal in a Sentence

He listens to heavy metal.

lead, gold, and other heavy metals

Recent Examples on the Web

Lead, a heavy metal once common in products like pipes and paints, is a neurotoxin that can stunt children’s development, lower IQ scores and increase blood pressure in adults, according to the Associated Press. —Molly Morrow, Chicago Tribune, 9 Apr. 2026

Not country music, not heavy metal, not fiction or film. —Ivan J. Bates, Baltimore Sun, 4 Apr. 2026

But how is a phenomenal heavy metal kid in Calcutta who plays amazing guitar gonna get to the front of the line, ahead of Taylor Swift or someone like that. —George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Apr. 2026

The manufacturing process can also introduce impurities — like bacteria or heavy metals — into peptide drugs. —Anjeanette Damon, ProPublica, 3 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for heavy metal

• diacetyl
• betel
• cetyl
• kettle
• mettle
• nettle
• petal
• setal
• settle
• gunmetal
• nonmetal
• resettle