Noun: a strong, heavy metal used in tools, buildings, and blood (as a nutrient). Verb: to press clothes with a heated tool to make them smooth.
From Old English *īsern* or *īren*, from Proto‑Germanic *īsarną*, possibly from a Celtic or unknown older source. The word has ancient roots tied to early metalworking cultures.
Iron is so central to human history that entire ages—like the Iron Age—are named after it. Your blood literally uses iron to carry oxygen, so you’re walking around with tiny bits of metal working for you all the time.
In many societies, domestic uses of iron (such as ironing clothes or operating early irons and stoves) were coded as women’s unpaid labor, while industrial ironwork and metallurgy were coded as male trades. This division shaped how strength and technical skill around iron were associated more with men than with women.
Use neutral language when referring to work with iron, whether domestic or industrial, and avoid assuming the gender of people performing these tasks. When describing historical labor, note that women often participated in both domestic and industrial work with iron, even when not formally recognized.
When discussing industrialization and metalwork, include women’s roles in factories, foundries, and wartime production, where they handled iron and steel equipment and processes that were long portrayed as exclusively male domains.
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