material

[ muh-teer-ee-uhl ]

/ məˈtɪər i əl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR material ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the substance or substances of which a thing is made or composed: Stone is a durable material.

anything that serves as crude or raw matter to be used or developed: Wood pulp is the raw material from which paper is made.

any constituent element.

a textile fabric: material for a dress.

a group of ideas, facts, data, etc., that may provide the basis for or be incorporated into some integrated work: to gather material for a history of North Carolina; to write material for a comedy show.

materials, the articles or apparatus needed to make or do something: writing materials.

a person considered as having qualities suited to a particular sphere of activity: The boy's teachers did not think he was college material.

adjective

formed or consisting of matter; physical; corporeal: the material world.

relating to, concerned with, or involving matter: material forces.

pertaining to the physical rather than the spiritual or intellectual aspect of things: material comforts.

pertaining to or characterized by an undue interest in corporeal things; unspiritual.

of substantial import; of much consequence; important: Your support will make a material difference in the success of our program.

pertinent or essential (usually followed by to): a question not material to the subject at hand.

Law. likely to influence the determination of a case: material evidence.

Philosophy. of or relating to matter as distinguished from form.

Origin of material

1300–50; Middle English < Late Latin māteriālis of, belonging to matter. See matter, -al¹

SYNONYMS FOR material

12 essential, vital.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR material ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR material

8 incorporeal.

12 unimportant.

SEE ANTONYMS FOR material ON THESAURUS.COM

synonym study for material

1. See matter.

OTHER WORDS FROM material

ma·te·ri·al·ness, noun pre·ma·te·ri·al, adjective qua·si-ma·te·ri·al, adjective qua·si-ma·te·ri·al·ly, adverb

su·per·ma·te·ri·al, noun trans·ma·te·ri·al, adjective un·ma·te·ri·al, adjective un·ma·te·ri·al·ly, adverb

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH material

material matériel

Words nearby material

mater dolorosa, mater turrita, materfamilias, materia alba, materia medica, material, material cause, material culture, material equivalence, material implication, material mode

Example sentences from the Web for material

The problem, of course, is that politicized ideas—religious and otherwise—are entangled with material problems.

COEXIST’s Bonehead Bumper-Sticker Politics |Michael Schulson |December 21, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
This material has been reviewed by the CIA to prevent the disclosure of classified information.

CIA Agents Assess: How Real Is ‘Homeland’? |Chuck Cogan, John MacGaffin |December 15, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The comedian was right to call out Bill Cosby, but his material is littered with jokes about rape.

Bill Cosby Foe Hannibal Buress Joked About Date Rape |Rich Goldstein |November 20, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
While Kalman tends to mine the past for material, she is as irreverent as she is sentimental.

The Singular Artist of New Yorkistan |Lizzie Crocker |November 14, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

The material (i.e. the slurs) generally gets inserted into other, larger pieces about policy debates.

Before Ditching His Top Aides, Obama Should Look in the Mirror |Leslie H. Gelb |November 2, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The shields varied in form and material from tribe to tribe.

Homer and His Age |Andrew Lang
At an expense for material, I should think, of $7,400 in all to cover the enterprise.

The Crime of the Century |Henry M. Hunt
The material used was flannel, and such interments are frequently mentioned in the literature of the time.

A History of Mourning |Richard Davey
In this material and in such forms, the ideal as concrete spirituality does not admit of being realized.

The Introduction to Hegel's Philosophy of Fine Arts |Georg Hegel
Sound is transmitted in longitudinal waves through air and other material substance as vibration.

Electricity and Magnetism |Elisha Gray

British Dictionary definitions for material

material

/ (məˈtɪərɪəl) /

noun

the substance of which a thing is made or composed; component or constituent matter raw material

facts, notes, etc, that a finished work may be based on or derived from enough material for a book

cloth or fabric

a person who has qualities suitable for a given occupation, training, etc that boy is not university material

adjective

of, relating to, or composed of physical substance; corporeal

philosophy composed of or relating to physical as opposed to mental or spiritual substance the material world

of, relating to, or affecting economic or physical wellbeing material ease

of or concerned with physical rather than spiritual interests

of great import or consequence of material benefit to the workers

(often foll by to) relevant

philosophy of or relating to matter as opposed to form

law relevant to the issue before court: applied esp to facts or testimony of much significance a material witness

Derived forms of material

materialness, noun

Word Origin for material

C14: via French from Late Latin māteriālis, from Latin māteria matter

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

material

noun

adjective

Origin of material

SYNONYMS FOR material

ANTONYMS FOR material

synonym study for material

OTHER WORDS FROM material

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH material

Words nearby material

Example sentences from the Web for material

British Dictionary definitions for material

noun

adjective

Derived forms of material

Word Origin for material

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

material

noun

adjective

Origin of material

SYNONYMS FOR material

ANTONYMS FOR material

synonym study for material

OTHER WORDS FROM material

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH material

Words nearby material

Words related to material

Example sentences from the Web for material

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []) .push({}); British Dictionary definitions for material

noun

adjective

Derived forms of material

Word Origin for material

British Dictionary definitions for material