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

Hill’s departure marks the end of an extraordinary run in one of heavy metal’s defining bands. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 9 Oct. 2026

The unnecessary additional testing included blood testing for hormones, heavy metal toxicity levels, vitamins and genetic testing, according to the indictment. — Angie Dimichele, Sun Sentinel, 8 Oct. 2026

Even with a human controlling the machine remotely, LaPenna was still trading blows with a heavy metal robot capable of putting real force behind its movements. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 5 Oct. 2026

Formed in 2012, Polaris broke through with 2017’s The Mortal Coil and 2020’s The Death of Me, both of which debuted in the Australian Top 10 and earned ARIA nominations for best hard rock/heavy metal album. — Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 4 Oct. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1864, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for heavy metal

• diacetyl
• acetyl
• bimetal
• gunmetal
• nonmetal
• resettle
• teakettle
• unsettle
• betel
• cetyl
• kettle
• mettle