Origin of mass

1350–1400; Middle English masse < Latin massa mass < Greek mâza barley cake, akin to mássein to knead

synonym study for mass

5. See size1.

OTHER WORDS FROM mass

mass·ed·ly [mas-id-lee, mast-lee] /ˈmæs ɪd li, ˈmæst li/, adverb un·massed, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH mass

massed mast

Words nearby mass

masqat, masque, masque biliaire, masquer, masquerade, mass, mass affluent, mass book, mass card, mass defect, mass extinction

Definition for mass (2 of 3)

Mass
[ mas ]
/ mæs /

noun

the celebration of the Eucharist. Compare High Mass, Low Mass.
(sometimes lowercase) a musical setting of certain parts of this service, as the Kyrie eleison, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei.

Origin of Mass

before 900; Middle English masse, Old English mæsse < Vulgar Latin *messa, Late Latin missa, formally feminine of Latin missus, past participle of mittere to send, dismiss; perhaps extracted from a phrase in the service with missa est and a feminine subject

Definition for mass (3 of 3)

Mass.

Massachusetts.

Words related to mass

throng, horde, group, crowd, number, lump, majority, pile, lot, mob, piece, size, load, pyramid, knot, chunk, clot, plurality, staple, bunch

Example sentences from the Web for mass

British Dictionary definitions for mass (1 of 3)

mass
/ (mæs) /

noun

adjective

done or occurring on a large scale mass hysteria; mass radiography
consisting of a mass or large number, esp of people a mass meeting

verb

to form (people or things) or (of people or things) to join together into a mass the crowd massed outside the embassy
See also masses, mass in

Derived forms of mass

massed, adjective massedly (ˈmæsɪdlɪ, ˈmæstlɪ), adverb

Word Origin for mass

C14: from Old French masse, from Latin massa that which forms a lump, from Greek maza barley cake; perhaps related to Greek massein to knead

British Dictionary definitions for mass (2 of 3)

Mass
/ (mæs, mɑːs) /

noun

(in the Roman Catholic Church and certain Protestant Churches) the celebration of the Eucharist See also High Mass, Low Mass
a musical setting of those parts of the Eucharistic service sung by choir or congregation

Word Origin for Mass

Old English mæsse, from Church Latin missa, ultimately from Latin mittere to send away; perhaps derived from the concluding dismissal in the Roman Mass, Ite, missa est, Go, it is the dismissal

British Dictionary definitions for mass (3 of 3)

Mass.

abbreviation for

Massachusetts

Medical definitions for mass

mass
[ măs ]

n.

Scientific definitions for mass

mass
[ măs ]

A measure of the amount of matter contained in or constituting a physical body. In classical mechanics, the mass of an object is related to the force required to accelerate it and hence is related to its inertia, and is essential to Newton's laws of motion. Objects that have mass interact with each other through the force of gravity. In Special Relativity, the observed mass of an object is dependent on its velocity with respect to the observer, with higher velocity entailing higher observed mass. Mass is measured in many different units; in most scientific applications, the SI unit of kilogram is used. See Note at weight. See also rest energy General Relativity.

Cultural definitions for mass (1 of 3)

Mass

The common name in the Roman Catholic Church, and among some members of the Anglican Communion, for the sacrament of Communion.

notes for Mass

In the Middle Ages in England, mass meant a religious feast day in honor of a specific person; thus, “Christ's Mass,” or Christmas, is the feast day of Christ; and Michaelmas is the feast day of the angel Michael.

Cultural definitions for mass (2 of 3)

Mass

In music, a musical setting for the texts used in the Christian Church at the celebration of the Mass, or sacrament of Communion. Most Masses have been written for use in the Roman Catholic Church.

notes for Mass

Many composers have written Masses; among them are Johann Sebastian Bach, Franz Josef Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Franz Schubert, Leonard Bernstein, and Duke Ellington.

Cultural definitions for mass (3 of 3)

mass

In physics, the property of matter that measures its resistance to acceleration. Roughly, the mass of an object is a measure of the number of atoms in it. The basic unit of measurement for mass is the kilogram. (See Newton's laws of motion; compare weight.)