materialism

C2 Topic:Money & Finance

US /məˈtɪɹiəlɪzəm/ UK /məˈtɪəɹiəlɪzəm/ See IPA manual

Freq #40274

Meanings

1

noun
A strong focus on owning things and having money rather than on spiritual or moral values.

She criticized the materialism of a society that measures success only by how much you own.
2

noun
The philosophical view that nothing exists except physical matter.

As a scientist, he leaned toward materialism, believing the mind is simply the activity of the brain.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a strong focus on owning... philistinism

2 noun · the philosophical view that... physicalismphilosophical materialism

Word family

Derived forms antimaterialismhypermaterialismneo-materialismnonmaterialismpostmaterialism

Related forms idealism materialist materialistic physicalism

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

dialectical materialism
a Marxist philosophy that explains change through opposing forces within material conditions

Adjective + noun

Etymology

Borrowed from French matérialisme. By surface analysis, material + -ism.

Topics

Money & Finance Philosophy & Reasoning Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# materialism

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /məˈtɪɹiəlɪzəm/
**IPA (UK):** /məˈtɪəɹiəlɪzəm/
**Frequency rank:** 40274

## Meanings
1. A strong focus on owning things and having money rather than on spiritual or moral values.
2. The philosophical view that nothing exists except physical matter.

## Examples
- She criticized the materialism of a society that measures success only by how much you own.
- As a scientist, he leaned toward materialism, believing the mind is simply the activity of the brain.

## Derived Forms
- antimaterialism
- hypermaterialism
- neo-materialism
- nonmaterialism
- postmaterialism

## Related Forms
- idealism
- materialist
- materialistic
- physicalism

## Etymology
Borrowed from French matérialisme. By surface analysis, material + -ism.

## AI Etymology
Materialism is borrowed from French matérialisme. By surface analysis, material + -ism. In present-day use, it can mean a strong focus on owning things and having money rather than on spiritual or moral values, or the philosophical view that nothing exists except physical matter. Derived formations include antimaterialism, hypermaterialism, neo-materialism, nonmaterialism, and postmaterialism.

## Topics
- Money & Finance
- Philosophy & Reasoning
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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