Mettle

Definition: Mettle

Mettle

Noun

1. The courage to carry on: "he kept fighting on pure spunk"; "you haven't got the heart for baseball".

Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
 

Date "mettle" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1200. (references)

Note: Mettle \Met"tle\, noun. [E. metal, used in tropical sense in allusion to the temper of the metal of sword blade. See Metal.]. (references)

Slang in 1811

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Synonyms: Mettle

Affections

Noun: affections, affect; character, qualities, disposition, nature, spirit, tone; temper, temperament; diathesis, idiosyncrasy; cast of mind, cast of soul, habit of mind, habit of soul, frame of mind, frame of soul; predilection, turn, natural turn of mind; bent, bias, predisposition, proneness, proclivity, propensity, propenseness, propension, propendency; vein, humor, mood, grain, mettle; sympathy; (love).

Courage

Give courage, infuse courage, inspire courage; reassure, encourage, embolden, inspirit, cheer, nerve, put upon one's mettle, rally, raise a rallying cry; pat on the back, make a man of., keep in countenance.

Up to, up to the scratch; upon one's mettle; reassured; Verb: unfeared, undreaded.

Manliness, manhood; nerve, pluck, mettle, game; heart, heart of grace; spunk, guts, face, virtue, hardihood, intestinal fortitude; firmness; (stability); heart of oak; bottom, backbone, spine; (perseverance) a. resolution; (determination); bulldog courage.

Man, man of mettle; hero, demigod, Amazon, Hector; lion, tiger, panther, bulldog; fighting-cock; bully, fire eater.

Excitation

Stimulate; exsuscitate; inspirit; spirit up, stir up, work up, pique; infuse life into, give new life to; bring new blood, introduce new blood; quicken; sharpen, whet; work upon; (incite); hurry on, give a fillip, put on one's mettle.

Resolution

Adverb: resolutely; Adjective: in earnest, in good earnest; seriously, joking apart, earnestly, heart and soul; on one's mettle; manfully, like a man, with a high hand; with a strong hand; (exertion).

Crosswords: Mettle

Coins are made by mint of metal. Character is made by dint of mettle. (references; author: unknown)

The Mettle of Jerry McGuire (1915)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Books

• American gold mettle : a sentient perspective of Ulysses Grant (reference)

• Appalachian Mettle (reference)

• Gentlemen of brave mettle : life in early East Griqualand (reference)

• Mettle (reference)

• Mettle of the Pasture (reference)

  (more book examples)

Music

• Mettle (reference)

  (more classical music examples; more popular music examples)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Front row, center: Shining among nine other advanced pear selections now getting their mettle tested at several U.S. locations, Potomac was released in May 1993. P. Credit: USDA ARS News; photo by Keith Weller..

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

Expressions using "mettle": be on his mettle ♦ be on one's mettle ♦ full of mettle ♦ on his mettle ♦ on one's mettle ♦ put on one's mettle ♦ put smb. on his mettle ♦ shown one's mettle ♦ To put one one's mettle. Additional references.

Ending with "mettle": Self-mettle.

Albanian

xhelozi (heartburning, jealousy), temperament (nature, temper, temperament), karakter (character, ethos, fiber, fibre, format, grain, kind, make, Mold, mould, nature, persona, size, sort, temper), guxim (audacity, boldness, courage, dare, daring, doughtiness, fearlessness, fortitude, forwardness, guts, hardihood, hardiness, heart, intrepidity, nerve, pluck, spirit, spunk, stoutness, valor, valorous, valour). (various references)

Arabic 

‏مزاج (cast of mind, complexion, constitution, disposition, feather, figure, frame, frame of mind, framing, grain, humor, humour, kidney, mind, mood, nature, spirits, state of mind, temper, temperament, tone, vein), ‏همة (endeavor, endeavour, intention, vim), ‏نشاط (action, activity, alacrity, bang, bounce, energy, forcefulness, ginger, go, kick, lift, liveliness, momentum, movement, pep, promptitude, prosperity, pursuit, spirit, spunk, stir, strenuousness, tuck, verve, vigor, vigour, vim, virility, zip), ‏حماسة (abandonment, ardor, ardour, eagerness, ebullience, elan, enthusiasm, fervency, fervor, fervour, fire, glow, heartiness, impetus, intense interest, keenness, rage, responsiveness, warmth, zeal). (various references)

Bulgarian 

усърдие (alacrity, ardour, assiduity, assiduousness, diligence, hardness, impressment, industry, pains, painstaking, sedulity, zeal), ревност (eagerness, fervency, heartburning, jealousy, violence, zealotry), характер (character, complexion, constitution, disposition, fiber, fibre, grit, grittiness, individuality, kidney, make, make up, mentality, metal, mould, nature, pattern, spirit, stuff, temper, turn), темперамент (habit, humor, humour, temperament, zip), кураж (cheer up, courage, fortitude, pecker, resolve, spunk), нрав (character, constitution, disposition, kidney, make, make up, metal, nature, temper, temperament), издръжливост (bottom, endurance, guts, patience, reliability, resistance, sand, sinews, stay, staying power, strength, tenacity, tensility, toughness, vitality, wear), дух (fetch, ghost, mind, morale, pecker, phantasm, presence, shade, soul, spirit, spook, tone, visitant). (various references)

Chinese 

胆略, 氣概 (lofty quality, spirit). (various references)

Czech

odvaha (boldness, courage, daring, doughtiness, grit, guts, high spirits, nerve, spirit, spunk, valor, valour), bojovnost (bellicosity, fight, militancy, pugnacity). (various references)

Farsi 

فطرت (Mould, Temperament), گرمی (Ardor, Glow, Heat, Rut, Stew, Warmth, Zeal, Zing), غیرت (Ardor, Enthusiasm, Zeal, Zealotry), خمیره (Nature), جنس (Brand, Breed, Commodity, Gender, Genus, Kind, Stamp, Stuff, Substance), جرات (Courage, Gut, Spirit, Spunk, Venture). (various references)

French

humeur, fougue, courage, capable de faire ses preuves, audace, ardeur. (various references)

German

Eifer (alacrity, Ardor, ardour, assiduousness, assiduousnesses, eagerness, enthusiasm, fervour, heat, intentness, keenness, studiousness, zeal, zealotry, zealousness). (various references)

Greek 

κουράγιο (cheer up, comfort, guts, mettled, nerve, stick to it), τόλμη (boldness, daring, guts, hardihood, hardiness, mettled, nerve, pluck, spunk, temerity), θάρροσ (courage, elation, grit, gut, guts, heart, mettled, nerve, pluck, spunk), θάρρος (courage). (various references)

Hebrew 

מוכן ל�"וכיח את עצמו (on his mettle). (various references)

Hungarian

vérmérséklet (metal, temper, temperament), hevesség (acuity, acuteness, Ardor, ardour, bluster, dash, fervency, fierceness, impetuosity, keenness, poignancy, rampageousness, rampancy, severity, vehemence, warmth). (various references)

Indonesian

keberanian (bravery, courage, daring, gallantry, spunk, valiance, valor, valour). (various references)

Italian

temperamento (disposition, habit, kidney, spirit, temper, temperament), foga (Ardor, ardour, heat, impetuosity, impetus), coraggio (bravery, courage, grit, guts, hardihood, heart, manliness, nerve, pluck, stoutness, valiancy, valor, valour), carattere (character, disposition, feature, letter, nature, temper, temperament, type), ardore (Ardor, ardour, fervor, fervour, glow, heat, hotness, passion, zeal). (various references)

Pig Latin

ettlemay.(various references)

Portuguese

vivacidade (animation, bounce, brightness, color, colour, fervency, flotage, ginger, hastiness, life, liveliness, nimbleness, quickness, quicksilver, raciness, readiness, snap, verve, vivacity, warmth), impetuosidade (impetuosity, mettlesomeness, random, vehemence, wildness), fervor (ardor, ardour, fervency, fervor, fervour, mettlesomeness, unction, vehemence, warmth, zeal), energia (action, activity, drive, driving, efficiency, energy, force, ginger, go, grasp, gumption, handgrip, heartiness, intensity, iron, ironwork, kick, liveliness, lustiness, main, momentum, nerve, output, pep, pith, potency, power, push, snap, spring, spunk, stamina, steam, stoutness, strength, verve, vigor, vigour, vim, virility, vitality, zip), ardor (ardor, ardour, caloric, fervency, fervor, fervour, fire, flame, glow, heat, lust, mettlesomeness, passion, tingle, vehemence, warmth, zeal). (various references)

Romanian

zel (Ardor, ardour, devoutness, eagerness, earnestness, fervour, forwardness, gumption, metal, readiness, solicitude, vim, warmth, zeal), temperament (blood, complexion, constitution, disposition, humor, humour, kidney, nature, pepper, spirit, temper, temperament), râvnã (application, Ardor, ardour, diligence, eagerness, fervour, metal, warmth, zeal), fire (character, disposition, feather, fiber, fibre, grain, nature, sort, spirit, temper), entuziasm (elan, elation, enthusiasm, fire, fume, gusto, passion, pathos), caracter (aspect, character, characteristic, color, colour, complexion, composition, constitution, disposition, feature, grain, kidney, kind, letter, loathsomeness, nature, patchiness, sort, spirit, stamp, state, temper). (various references)

Russian 

темперамент (kidney, temperament, zip), горячность (fervency, fervor, fervour, hot blood, quick temper, vehemence), выдержка (aging, curing, excerpt, exposition, exposure, grit, moderation, sangfroid, time exposure, time-exposure), воодушевить, пыл (ardor, ardors, ardour, eagerness, elan, fervency, fervor, fervour, fire, flame, glow, metal, spunk, verve). (various references)

Scottish

meanmna (bravery, magnanimity, spirit). (various references)

Serbo-Croatian

narav (character, disposition, makeup, nature, temperament), karakter (character, lay, mold, mould, nature, personage, trim), hrabrost (bravery, courage, doughtiness, fortitude, gallantry, gut, hardihood, heart, morale, nerve, pluck, sportsmanship, spunk, valor, valour). (various references)

Spanish

temple (metal, Mold, mould, quenching, spirit, temper), brío (dash, fight, pride, spirit, verve, zest), ánimo (animus, come on, courage, encouragement, fight, go it, hold on, mind, never say die, soul, zest). (various references)

Swedish

skrot och korn, kurage (courage, grit, guts, spunk). (various references)

Turkish

hırs (ambition, anger, avidity, cupidity, desire, fire, forwardness, glow, greed, greediness, mammon, passion, rage, rapaciousness, rapacity, voracity), şevk (animation, ardour, desire, eagerness, elan, enthusiasm, fervency, fervor, fervour, glow, spirit, spiritedness, verve), ateş (blaze, fever, fire, flush, heat, pyro-, temperature), ataklık (dash, impetuosity, militancy, spunk). (various references)

Ukrainian

характер (blood, character, disposition, ethos, habit, kind, make up, nature, stripe, temperament, tone), мужність (bravery, courage, machismo, manhood, manliness, masculinity, nerve), запал (eagerness, fervor, fervour, fuse, fusee, fuze, ignition, lighter, passion, primer, squib, zeal, zest). (various references)

Vietnamese 

tính khí dũng khí, tính hăng hái (liveliness, zealousness), nhiệt tình (animation, burning, devoted, devotedly, devout, fire, impassionedness, mettled, mettlesome, spirit, verve, warm), khí phách nhuệ khí, khí khái, khí chất (temperament). (various references)

Welsh

metel (metal), arial (vigor). (various references)

Derivations

Words beginning with "mettle": mettled, mettles, mettlesome. (additional references)

Misspellings

"Mettle" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Ettl, martle, martlet, mattel, mattle, mattole, mentle, Mertel, Mertle, metce, Metel, Metella, Methley, metl, metle, Mette, mettel, Metteya, mettre, mitle, mittel, mittle, mottler, Mutla, Mutloe, Mutlu, muttley, mytle, pettle, umteteli. (additional references)

Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams

-2 letters: leet, meet, melt, mete, teel, teem, tele.

-3 letters: eel, elm, eme, lee, let, mel, met, tee, tel, tet.

-4 letters: el, em, et, me.

+1 letter: mettled, mettles, templet.

+2 letters: embattle, mantelet, matelote, omelette, palmette, template, templets.

+3 letters: altimeter, cattlemen, embattled, embattles, embrittle, extolment, letterman, lettermen, mantelets, matelotes, meltwater, methylate, mistletoe, motleyest, omelettes, palmettes, stalemate, streamlet, tablemate, tegmental, telemeter, telemetry, templates, temptable, tiltmeter, timeliest, timetable, tremolite, voltmeter.

+4 letters: altimeters, battlement, completest, embrittled, embrittles, enlistment, entailment, extolments, filmsetter, kettledrum, legitimate, lentamente, letterbomb, letterform, littermate, maltreated, maltreater, meltwaters, metabolite, metastable, methylated, methylates, mettlesome, mistletoes, nettlesome, palmettoes, remittable, settlement, stablemate, stalemated, stalemates, streamlets, streetlamp, tablemates, tanglement, telemeters, telemetric, tiltmeters, timetables, trembliest, tremolites, vestmental, voltmeters.