material

A2 Topic:Materials & Substances

US /məˈtɪɹ.i.əl/ UK /məˈtɪə.ɹi.əl/ See IPA manual

Freq #2348

Meanings

1

noun
A substance that something is made from.

Coal is a hard black material.
2

noun
Things needed to do or make something.

The students brought their writing materials to class.
3

noun
Information or ideas used to create something.

The archives provided rich material for a biography.
4

adj
Relating to physical things or money rather than the mind or spirit.

They valued material possessions above everything else.
5

adj
Important and having a real effect on something.

Your support made a material difference to the outcome.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a substance that something... stuff

Word family

Forms materials

Derived forms antimaterialarchaeomaterialarcheomaterialastromaterialbimaterialbiomaterialcryptomaterialecomaterialgeomaterialhazmatmaterialisation materialise

Related forms materielmatter substantial

Appears in

Phrases (5)

See all

absorbent material
a substance that can take in and retain liquid or another substance

Adjective + noun
combustible material
a substance capable of burning to release heat

Adjective + noun
fissionable material
material containing nuclei capable of undergoing nuclear fission

Adjective + noun
material wealth
wealth consisting of money, possessions, and other tangible assets

Adjective + noun
upholstery material
fabric used to cover padded furniture

Noun + noun

Etymology

From Middle English material, from Late Latin māteriālis, from Latin māteria (“wood, material, substance”), from māter (“mother”). Displaced native Middle English andweorc, andwork (“material, matter”) (from Old English andweorc (“matter, substance, material”)). Doublet of materiel.

material Middle English māteriālis la-lat māteria Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Materials & Substances

External links

# material

**Type:** Word
**Level:** A2
**Part of speech:** noun, adj
**IPA (US):** /məˈtɪɹ.i.əl/
**IPA (UK):** /məˈtɪə.ɹi.əl/
**Frequency rank:** 2348

## Meanings
1. A substance that something is made from.
2. Things needed to do or make something.
3. Information or ideas used to create something.
4. Relating to physical things or money rather than the mind or spirit.
5. Important and having a real effect on something.

## Examples
- Coal is a hard black material.
- The students brought their writing materials to class.
- The archives provided rich material for a biography.
- They valued material possessions above everything else.
- Your support made a material difference to the outcome.

## Derived Forms
- antimaterial
- archaeomaterial
- archeomaterial
- astromaterial
- bimaterial
- biomaterial
- cryptomaterial
- ecomaterial
- geomaterial
- hazmat
- materialisation
- materialise

## Related Forms
- materiel
- matter
- substantial

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: material
- Root: māteriālis
- Root: māteria

## Etymology
From Middle English material, from Late Latin māteriālis, from Latin māteria (“wood, material, substance”), from māter (“mother”). Displaced native Middle English andweorc, andwork (“material, matter”) (from Old English andweorc (“matter, substance, material”)). Doublet of materiel.

## AI Etymology
Material comes from Middle English material, from Late Latin māteriālis, from Latin māteria (“wood, material, substance”), from māter (“mother”). Displaced native Middle English andweorc, andwork (“material, matter”) (from Old English andweorc (“matter, substance, material”)). Doublet of materiel. In present-day English its meanings include a substance that something is made from, things needed to do or make something, and information or ideas used to create something. The historical chain runs through material (Middle English), māteriālis (Late Latin), and māteria (Latin). Related and derived forms include materiel, matter, substantial, and antimaterial.

## Topics
- Materials & Substances

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