ingot

American  

[ing-guht] / ˈɪŋ gət /

noun

1. a mass of metal cast in a convenient form for shaping, remelting, or refining.

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verb (used with object)

1. to make ingots of; shape into ingots.

ingot British  

/ ˈɪŋɡət /

noun

1. a piece of cast metal obtained from a mould in a form suitable for storage, transporting, and further use

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verb

1. (tr) to shape (metal) into ingots

Etymology

Origin of ingot

1350–1400; Middle English: literally, (something) poured in, equivalent to in- in- ¹ + got ( e ) a stream, Old English *gota, akin to gēotan to flow; cognate with German giessen, Gothic giutan, Old Norse gjōta to pour

Explanation

A processed piece of fine metal is an ingot. If you find a buried treasure chest, cross your fingers that it's full of gold ingots! When ingot was originally used in the 1500s, it meant "mold in which metal is cast." To make an ingot, metal is melted and poured into such a mold, where it hardens into a bar. Ingots are used to make metal easy to transport, store, and measure — and sometimes to be directly traded for money, particularly in the case of gold.

Example Sentences

A complete plano-convex ingot has been uncovered in Sweden for the first time.

From Science Daily • Nov. 23, 2025

The ingot is cut with diamond wire saws into wafers, which are squares that are as thin as a human hair.

From Barron's • Nov. 7, 2025

The presence of a usable ingot seemed unlikely, and if true, downright alchemic.

From New York Times • Apr. 18, 2024

It starts off with a large ingot of ultra-pure silicon grown from a single crystal.

From BBC • Dec. 16, 2023

Before that an ingot must be poured from these sweepings, as the First Craftsman had ordered.

From "The Golden Goblet" by Eloise Jarvis McGraw