iron man noun3 •(figurative) Someone who performs a very complex, complicated, or strenuous task without assistance.You don't have to be an iron man and do all the work yourself: there are people here who can help you. •[usually plural] (slang, old-fashioned) A dollar.This time it was thirty-five grand, a whole damn marching battalion of iron men, […] — 1993 •A self-acting spinning mule used in cotton manufacture. formsiron mans · iron men