How to pronounce steel

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What steel means

verb

Most people know steel in its everyday sense. Here's its other meaning.

To make yourself brave and ready for something hard

In a sentence: Maya steeled herself, took a deep breath and jumped into the icy lake.

Where it comes from: It comes from the metal: to steel something first meant to cover or harden it with steel, and later came to mean hardening your mind. The metal's name goes back to an old Germanic root meaning to be firm.

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