metal detector

noun

plural metal detectors

: a device that detects the presence of hidden metal: such as

a

: a security device that scans individuals for dangerous objects (such as weapons)

I boarded the plane armed with several frying thermometers, which set off the metal detector …

—Jeffrey Steingarten

Once inside the theater, the crowd had to pass through an airport-style metal detector as a security precaution.

—Richard Zoglin

b

: a handheld apparatus that uses electrical induction (see induction sense 4c) to detect the presence of metallic objects (such as coins or jewelry) buried a short distance underground

A local man using a metal detector stumbled upon the site last March. He found two copper brooches, or pins, measuring four inches across.

—Time for Kids

Examples of metal detector in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Republican and Republican-leaning teachers were significantly more likely than their left-leaning counterparts to support putting armed officers (69%) or metal detectors (43%) in schools. —USA TODAY, 11 Apr. 2024

Evolv’s scanners have reportedly flagged umbrellas as guns but failed to detect aluminum and steel tubes that were cut to look like gun barrels Evolv’s scanners look like metal detectors but are equipped with AI. —Gaby Del Valle, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024

Reaching the the Emmys was a feat: there was a maze of security, metal detectors, bomb- and COVID-19-sniffing dogs. —TIME, 9 Feb. 2024

Wisconsin’s Capitol is one of the most accessible statehouses in the country, with a full-time police force in the building but no metal detectors or requirements to show security badges to enter during work hours. —Journal Sentinel, 3 Jan. 2024

Searchers wielding metal detectors found a cache of Bronze Age jewelry in a carrot field in Switzerland, 1,000-year-old gold earrings and silver coins in the Netherlands, and a trove of sixth-century gold objects in Norway. —Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Dec. 2023

All visitors pass through airport-style metal detectors and security guards with sniffer dogs walked around the conference center. —Mike Corder, Quartz, 7 Mar. 2024

Ian Porter stumbled upon the ancient treasure trove while using a metal detector to search a field in Anglesey in March 2020, the Amgueddfa Cymru — Museum Wales said in a Feb. 28 news release shared with McClatchy News. —Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 29 Feb. 2024

Parents and community members were pushing for metal detectors at schools after a shooting in October 2021 at Timberview High School, a campus in the same district. —Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 20 Feb. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1880, in the meaning defined above