Basic Details
Word: Metal
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: A hard, usually shiny material such as iron, copper, gold or aluminium, which can be shaped and which carries heat and electricity well.
Sounds like: mettle (courage and determination)
How to Spell Metal
Syllables: met - al
Tricky part: The ending is al. Do not confuse it with mettle (courage) or medal (a prize), which sound similar.
Watch out for: metel, mettal, metle
Memory tip: Metal ends in al, the first two letters of aluminium, which is itself a metal.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The temple bells are cast from bell metal, a hard mix of copper and tin.
Example 2: Copper is the metal used in most electric wires.
Example 3: The metal roof gets very hot in May.
Fun Fact
Mercury is a metal that stays liquid at room temperature, which is why it was once used in thermometers.
Practise the CREST Way
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the word in the sentence and choose it:
The old bridge is made of a lamet that rusts in the rain.
a) mettle
b) metal
c) medal
d) petal
Show answer
b) metal. A bridge that rusts is made of a metal, and only metal can be made from l, a, m, e and t.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
The blacksmith heated the metel in the furnace until it glowed orange and then hammered it into the shape of a horseshoe.
a) metel
b) horseshoe
c) blacksmith
d) furnace
Show answer
a) metel. The ending is al, as in metallic, where the a can be heard clearly.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is misspelt. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. mettal 2. magnetic 3. conductor 4. alloy
a) a mixture of two or more metals
b) able to attract iron
c) a hard, shiny material such as iron, copper or gold
d) a material that lets heat or electricity pass through
Show answer
c) a hard, shiny material such as iron, copper or gold. Alloy, magnetic and conductor are spelt right; mettal doubles the t, and a double t belongs only in mettle.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these is NOT a metal?
a) silver
b) iron
c) wood
d) zinc
Show answer
c) wood
2. Which word means courage and sounds like metal?
a) middle
b) medal
c) mettle
d) meddle
Show answer
c) mettle
