cast iron
[kast′ī′ərn]
a hard, unmalleable alloy of iron made by casting: it contains a high proportion of carbon and silicon, has low tensile strength, and is very fluid and fusible when molten
adjective
- made of cast iron
- very hard, rigid, strong, healthy, etc.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
noun
A hard, brittle, nonmalleable iron-carbon alloy, cast into shape, containing 2 to 4.5 percent carbon, 0.5 to 3 percent silicon, and lesser amounts of sulfur, manganese, and phosphorus.
adjective
- Made of cast iron.
- Rigid; inflexible: a cast-iron rule.
- Exceptionally strong or resistant: a cast-iron stomach.