base metal
1
4.0
- noun
- /beɪs ˈmɛtəl/
- Specialized
:
metal base
- For centuries alchemists tried to make gold from base metals.
- base metal prices
- transmute base metals
- made of base metal
So all those base metals started changing into gold slowly but surely.
- So all those base metals started changing into gold slowly but surely.
Examples
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Alchemy, or the turning of a base metal into gold, is a dream of man for thousands of years.
Blog text (14) -
Now, a long time ago, people called "alchemists" believed that you could change base metals to precious metals.
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Some metals are common, like copper, and are called base metals.
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TGR: China has its own precious and base metal resources, and it has growing demand.
Blog text (33) -
After the fall of Rome, their coinage went from gold to silver to copper to base metals.
Blog text (25) -
China's domestic demand for goods is making itself felt in world commodity prices (especially base metals), a good indicator of economic weight.
Academic text (2004) -
Keen as the companies are to seal the deal, selling off assets could come at a time when zinc is one of the few bright spots among the base metals.
Blog text (5) -
For example, the exploitation of the huge base metal deposits in Peru, Chile, Zaire, Mexico, and Papua New Guinea.
Academic text (1990) -
Americans used silver half-dollars, quarters, and dimes until 1965 because they, too, did not have any alternative; in 1965, the rise in the price of silver forced that coinage out of circulation, and coins of base metal took their place.
Blog text (19) -
Some metals are common, like base metals, such as iron and copper.
Antonyms
How Precious
19
3.8
- Specialized
1
4.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a metal that is common and not considered precious' is directly and compositionally derived from 'base' (non-precious, low in value) + 'metal' (a metallic element). Although 'base' has a slightly technical sense in metallurgy ('not a noble metal'), the everyday sense of 'not valuable/precious' is enough for a B1 learner to infer the intended meaning. This compound follows normal English noun + adjective composition and has clear parallels in other languages, making it immediately comprehensible to learners who know both words.
Etymology
Base metal comes from the image of a base that sits under a thin layer of gold or silver and a metal that is ordinary and common. So base metal means a common, 'not precious' metal like iron, copper, or zinc.