Steel and Metal

What is the difference between steel and metal?   Well, metal refers to things like gold, silver, copper or iron ore.    Steel however is an alloy, meaning that it has been combined with other substances.   Webster’s defines steel by how much carbon is in it.

Often English speakers will use the two words without being too concerned about the definition.  For example, we will talk about “sheet metal”.   According to the dictionary definition it should be called “sheet steel” because in all likelihood it is an alloy.   

If you have any questions leave a comment or send me an email at doug@English-With-Doug.com.