- a type of rock music characterized by a strong beat and amplified instrumental effects, sometimes with violent or nihilistic lyrics
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
ˈheav•y ˈmet•al, n. [uncountable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Music, Music and Danceloud, highly amplified, often harsh rock music with a heavy beat.
heav′y met′al,
- Biochemistry, Chemistryany metal with a specific gravity of 5.0 or greater, esp. one that is toxic to organisms, as lead, mercury, copper, and cadmium.
- Music, Music and Danceaggressive and heavily amplified rock music, commonly performed by groups that wear spectacular or bizarre costumes.
- 1860–65, for literal sense
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
heavy metal n
'heavy metal' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Goth
- hammer
- head-banger
- heavy
- metal
- shot
- shot put
- thrash metal
- bearing plate
- boilermaker
- chock
- cradle
- EDTA
- fragmentation grenade
- gib
- metalhead
- penicillamine
- plate-dog
- wrecker's ball
- speed metal