# metal vs mettle

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### metal
*noun · IPA /ˈmɛ.təl/ · frequency rank #1,607*
Chemical elements or alloys, their ores, and the mines where their ores come from.

### mettle
*noun · IPA /ˈmɛtəl/ · frequency rank #40,798*
A quality of courage and endurance.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/metal-vs-mettle