Why Does a Metal Spoon Get Hot Faster Than a Wooden One?

Place a metal spoon and a wooden spoon in hot soup and the metal handle soon feels much hotter. The main difference is not that metal has “absorbed more heat”, but how quickly energy moves through the material. Metals usually have far higher thermal conductivity than wood, so energy entering the submerged end travels rapidly towards your hand.

In a metal, mobile electrons and vibrations of the crystal lattice can both carry energy. Wood is porous, contains pockets of poorly conducting air, and has a structure that restricts energy transfer, which is why it is often used for insulation. A wooden handle still warms gradually; it simply receives less energy over the same interval. Left in the soup long enough, it will not remain at room temperature forever.

Feeling “hot” is not merely reading temperature with the skin. What matters is also how quickly energy enters the tissue and raises its temperature. A metal surface that delivers energy rapidly can therefore feel hotter than wood at the same temperature. In a cold room, the same metal feels colder because it draws heat from your hand faster. Temperature describes a state; conductivity helps determine how quickly that state changes, while touch often blends the two.

Source:
https://openstax.org/books/college-physics-2e/pages/14-5-conduction