Key Facts
- Word: 금속 (geumsok), noun, Sino-Korean origin
- Register: neutral, technical-leaning
- Senses: metal
- Hanja: 金屬
Metal in Korean: What Does 금속 Mean?
금속 covers every kind of metal, from iron to copper, and appears in science, shopping and travel. You hear it in 금속 탐지기, the metal detector at an airport, and in labels for products made of metal. For a specific metal Korean names it directly: 철 is iron and 금 is gold. The native everyday word 쇠 often means iron or metal in general, but 금속 is the safer choice when you want a clear, neutral term.
How Do You Pronounce 금속?
Say geum-sok. The ㅡ in 금 is unrounded, so keep your lips flat and relaxed. The final ㅁ is closed with the lips, and the final ㄱ in 속 is stopped without release. With a particle the ㄱ links, so 금속은 is read geum-so-geun and 금속으로 is geum-so-geu-ro.
Example Sentences with 금속
이 의자는 금속으로 만들었어요.
i uijaneun geumsogeuro mandeureosseoyo
This chair is made of metal.
으로 marks the material, and 만들었어요 means "made". The final ㄱ of 금속 links to 으, giving geum-so-geu-ro.
금속은 열을 잘 전달해요.
geumsogeun yeoreul jal jeondalhaeyo
Metal conducts heat well.
잘 전달해요 means "transmits well". This is a plain science statement, and the word has the topic particle 은.
공항에서 금속 탐지기를 통과했어요.
gonghangeseo geumsok tamjigireul tonggwahaesseoyo
I passed through the metal detector at the airport.
탐지기 is a detector, and 통과했어요 is "passed through". The word 금속 stays unchanged before a following noun.
Common Phrases and Collocations
Practical phrases show where you will meet the word.
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 금속 탐지기 | metal detector |
| 금속 재료 | metal material |
| 금속 공예 | metalwork |
The Mistake to Avoid
Two near-identical syllables cause the confusion.
Wrong: ✗ Using 금속 when you mean gold, or 금 when you mean metal in general
Correct: ✓ 금 for gold only; 금속 for the general category
금 names one precious metal, gold. 금속 is the general category, which is why the word starts with the same 金 syllable.
금속 Compared with Similar Words
Three related words differ in how general they are.
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 쇠 | iron / metal (native) | Everyday word, often iron. |
| 철 | iron | Specific metal. |
| 금 | gold | Specific precious metal. |
What Are the Hanja behind 금속?
금속 is Sino-Korean, written 金屬. 金 means gold and, in compounds, metal, and 屬 means to belong, so the word reads as "things belonging to the metal class".
Choosing a Chair in a Furniture Shop
A customer asks which parts of a chair are metal. The answer distinguishes the legs from the seat rather than calling the whole object one material.
Customer
이 의자는 금속으로 만들었어요?
I uijaneun geumsogeuro mandeureosseoyo?
Is this chair made of metal?
Shop assistant
다리만 금속이에요.
Dariman geumsogieyo.
Only the legs are metal.
Customer
앉는 부분은요?
Anneun bubuneunyo?
What about the seat?
Shop assistant
그 부분은 나무예요.
Geu bubuneun namuyeyo.
That part is wood.
다리 can mean a person’s legs or the legs of furniture. 만 means “only”, so 다리만 limits the material claim to the legs. 앉는 부분 literally means “the part you sit on”, a useful way to ask about the seat when you do not know a specialist furniture term.
Where Will You Read 금속?
금속 appears in product descriptions, science lessons, craft classes and safety notices. A shop description may list 금속 beside 나무 or 플라스틱 under materials. A workshop may offer 금속 공예, metalwork. These uses concern the material category, even when no particular metal is named.
At airport security, 금속 탐지기 is a metal detector. 탐지기 names the device, while 금속 says what it detects. Recognizing that structure helps you read the compound without translating it as a type of metal. In 금속 재료, by contrast, 재료 means the material or supplies used to make something.
금속 is neutral and slightly technical. It is natural in a shop question when you want to know what an object is made of. 쇠 is common in everyday descriptions, especially where iron or steel is meant. 금속 leaves the category broad enough to include metals such as copper and aluminum too.
Describing Material without Guessing the Metal
금속으로 만들다 means “make out of metal”. The ending 으로 marks the material after the consonant ㄱ. To label an object directly, 금속이다 means “be metal”. The polite form 금속이에요 keeps 이 because the noun ends in a consonant.
A product can contain several materials. The chair dialogue names only the legs as metal and identifies the seat separately. When reading a product listing, check which part the material label describes before assuming the entire item is made of it.
The first syllable 금 is also the word for gold, but 금속 does not mean that an item contains gold. It names the larger category. If a description specifies 철, 구리 or 알루미늄, it has moved from the general class to a particular metal.
English also uses “metal” for a style of music. In Korean, that music sense uses the borrowing 메탈, as in 헤비메탈. A discussion of a band therefore needs a different word from a discussion of what a chair is made of.
Materials and Specific Metals
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 구리 | copper | One specific metal within the 금속 category. |
| 알루미늄 | aluminum | Another specific metal, written with a final ㅁ. |
| 나무 | wood; tree | In a materials description, it means wood. |
| 유리 | glass | A different material category from 금속. |
| 플라스틱 | plastic | Often appears beside metal in product specifications. |
The materials vocabulary lesson teaches these categories together. Start with 금속 when the exact metal is unknown; use its specific name when the label or speaker supplies it.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 금속 mean that an object is made of gold?
- In 금속으로 만들다, what does 으로 mark?
- Would 금속 be the usual word for the music genre “metal”?
Show answers
- No. It covers the metal category; gold is 금.
- The material used to make the object.
- No. The music borrowing is 메탈.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is metal in Korean?
It is 금속 (geumsok), the general word for metal.
How is it different from 금?
금 means gold only; 금속 covers all metals.
How do I say metal detector?
Say 금속 탐지기.
What is the native word?
쇠 is the native word, often meaning iron or metal.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Theme list: materials vocabulary groups 금속 with other material words.
- Index: browse Korean words A to Z for more words like metal.
- Practice: add 금속 to your vocabulary flashcard decks.
- Next word: paper in Korean, the next material word on this list.