Smelt

/smɛlt/

Meaning & Definition

noun

A process of making metal by melting.

The smelt of iron requires high temperatures in a blast furnace.

verb

To extract a metal from its ore by a process involving heating and melting.

The miners learned how to smelt the copper ore to obtain pure metal.

To fuse or melt (metal) in order to separate it from impurities.

They smelted the gold by heating it to a high temperature.

To refine (a metal) by melting and separating.

The factory smelts aluminum from recycled materials.

Middle English: from Old Norse 'smelta', meaning 'to melt'.

smelt down

To melt something in order to reshape it.

smelt iron

The process of extracting iron from its ore.

smelt with fire

To use intense heat to refine a metal.

melting

The process of changing from solid to liquid.

ore

A naturally occurring solid material from which a metal or valuable mineral can be extracted.

refine

To remove impurities or unwanted elements from a substance.

To perceive or detect a strong odor.

Dude, I totally smelt those cookies you made!

To emit an unpleasant smell.

That pizza smelt after it was left out all night.