filings

filings — noun

1. tiny sharp particles of metal that break away from a piece of metal when it is s

1.名詞B2
釋義

tiny sharp particles of metal that break away from a piece of metal when it is smoothed or shaped with a file tool.

例句

Naoko brushed the iron filings off the workbench into a dustpan.

collocation: iron filings — most common with metal-type noun

The blacksmith swept up the steel filings from the floor after sharpening the plough.

verb: sweep up / brush off filings

同義詞
  • shavings

    broader meaning — can refer to thin slices from wood or metal, and are usually larger curled pieces rather than tiny particles

  • particles

    more general — can refer to any very small pieces of any material, not specifically produced by filing

  • dust

    used for extremely fine filings that resemble powder, especially from grinding rather than filing

文法句型

filings + of + [metal type]

determiner (the/some) + [metal] + filings

用法筆記

Always used in plural form. 'Filings' normally refers to the fragments produced by filing or grinding metal; it is not used for paperwork (the homograph 'filing' is a separate word related to documents and records). The most common collocations pair 'filings' with the type of metal: iron filings, steel filings, brass filings.

常見錯誤

❌I threw away the filing from my metal project.
✅I threw away the filings from my metal project.
💡'filings' is always plural, even when referring to the material as a whole.
❌There were metal filings on the floor of the office filing room.
✅There were metal filings on the workshop floor.
💡'filings' (metal fragments) is easily confused with the homograph 'filing' (document storage); keep the context in a metalworking setting.