n.
- The science that deals with procedures used in extracting metals from their ores, purifying and alloying metals, and creating useful objects from metals.
- The study of metals and their properties in bulk and at the atomic level.
[New Latin metallūrgia, from Greek metallourgos, miner, worker in metals : metallon, a mine, metal + -ourgos, -worker (from ergon, work).]
metallurgic met'al·lur'gic or met'al·lur'gi·cal adj.metallurgically met'al·lur'gi·cal·ly adv.
metallurgist met'al·lur'gist n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.