Material definition |Dictionary.com

Related Searches

on Ask.com

fabric

sewing material

online fabric store

material properties

materials engineering

Material

13 dictionary results for: Material

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

ma·te·ri·al

[muh-teer-ee-uh

l] Pronunciation Key

–noun

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

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

3.	any constituent element.

4.	a textile fabric: material for a dress.

5.	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.

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

7.	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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

15.	Philosophy. of or pertaining to matter as distinguished from form.

[Origin: 1300–50; ME < LL māteriālis of, belonging to matter. See matter, -al¹

]

—Related forms

ma·te·ri·al·ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. See matter. 12. essential, vital.

—Antonyms 8. incorporeal. 12. unimportant.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

ma·te·ri·al (mə-tîr'ē-əl) Pronunciation Key
n.

The substance or substances out of which a thing is or can be made.
Something, such as an idea or information, that is to be refined and made or incorporated into a finished effort: material for a comedy.
materials Tools or apparatus for the performance of a given task: writing materials.
Yard goods or cloth.
A person who is qualified or suited for a position or activity: The members of the board felt that she was vice-presidential material.

adj.

Of, relating to, or composed of matter.
Of, relating to, or affecting physical well-being; bodily: "the moral and material welfare of all good citizens" (Theodore Roosevelt).
Of or concerned with the physical as distinct from the intellectual or spiritual: "Great men are they who see that spiritual is stronger than any material force, that thoughts rule the world" (Ralph Waldo Emerson).
Being both relevant and consequential; crucial: testimony material to the inquiry. See Synonyms at relevant.
Philosophy Of or relating to the matter of reasoning, rather than the form.

[Middle English, consisting of matter, material, from Old French, from Late Latin māteriālis, from Latin māteria, matter; see māter- in Indo-European roots.]

ma·te'ri·al·ness n.

(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
material

c.1386 (adj.) "pertaining to matter," a term in scholastic philosophy and theology, from L.L. materialis (adj.) "of or belonging to matter," from L. materia "matter, stuff, wood, timber" (see matter). The noun is attested from 1556. Materialism is 1748 as a philosophy that nothing exists except matter (from Fr.); 1851 (in Hawthorne) as "a way of life based entirely on consumer goods." Materialize "appear in bodily form" dates from 1880, from spiritualism.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

material
adjective
1.	concerned with worldly rather than spiritual interests; "material possessions"; "material wealth"; "material comforts"
2.	derived from or composed of matter; "the material universe" [ant: immaterial]
3.	directly relevant to a matter especially a law case; "his support made a material difference"; "evidence material to the issue at hand"; "facts likely to influence the judgment are called material facts"; "a material witness" [ant: immaterial]
4.	concerned with or affecting physical as distinct from intellectual or psychological well-being; "material needs"; "the moral and material welfare of all good citizens"- T.Roosevelt
5.	having material or physical form or substance; "that which is created is of necessity corporeal and visible and tangible" - Benjamin Jowett [syn: corporeal] [ant: immaterial]
6.	having substance or capable of being treated as fact; not imaginary; "the substantial world"; "a mere dream, neither substantial nor practical"; "most ponderous and substantial things"- Shakespeare [syn: substantial] [ant: insubstantial]
noun
1.	the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object; "coal is a hard black material"; "wheat is the stuff they use to make bread"
2.	information (data or ideas or observations) that can be used or reworked into a finished form; "the archives provided rich material for a definitive biography"
3.	artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or crocheting natural or synthetic fibers; "the fabric in the curtains was light and semitransparent"; "woven cloth originated in Mesopotamia around 5000 BC"; "she measured off enough material for a dress" [syn: fabric]
4.	things needed for doing or making something; "writing materials"; "useful teaching materials"
5.	a person judged suitable for admission or employment; "he was university material"; "she was vice-presidential material"

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Wallstreet Words - Cite This Source - Share This
material

Of sufficient importance or relevance as to have possible significant influence on an outcome. For example, the possibility that a firm might lose its right to operate anumber of television stations because competitors have filed with the Federal Communications Commission for those licenses would be a material fact in preparing the firm's financial statements.Compare immaterial.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms for Today's Investor by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: ma·te·ri·al
Pronunciation: m&-'tir-E-&l
Function: adjective
1 : of, relating to, or consisting of physicalmatter
2 : being of real importance or consequence
3 : being an essential component <the material terms of the contract>
4 : beingrelevant to a subject under consideration; specifically : being such as would affect or be taken into consideration by a reasonable person in acting or making a decision —see alsoINSIDER TRADING —ma·te·ri·al·i·ty /m&-"tir-E-'a-l&-tE/ noun —ma·te·ri·al·ly adverb

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law - Cite This Source - Share This
Main Entry: material
Function: noun
: something used for or made the object of consideration or study; specifically : EVIDENCE —see also BRADY MATERIAL

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Material

Ma*te"ri*al\, a. [L. materialis, fr. materia stuff, matter: cf. F. mat['e]riel. See Matter, and cf. Mat['E]riel.]

1. Consisting of matter; not spiritual; corporeal; physical; as, material substance or bodies.

The material elements of the universe. --Whewell.

2. Hence: Pertaining to, or affecting, the physical nature of man, as distinguished from the mental or moral nature; relating to the bodily wants, interests, and comforts.

3. Of solid or weighty character; not insubstantial; of cinsequence; not be dispensed with; important.

Discourse, which was always material, never trifling. --Evelyn.

I shall, in the account of simple ideas, set down only such as are most material to our present purpose. --Locke.

4. (Logic.) Pertaining to the matter, as opposed to the form, of a thing. See Matter.

Material cause. See under Cause.

Material evidence (Law), evidence which conduces to the proof or disproof of a relevant hypothesis. --Wharton.

Syn: Corporeal; bodily; important; weighty; momentous; essential.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Material

Ma*te"ri*al\, n. The substance or matter of which anything is made or may be made.

Raw material, any crude, unfinished, or elementary materials that are adapted to use only by processes of skilled labor. Cotton, wool, ore, logs, etc., are raw material.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Material

Ma*te"ri*al\, v. t. To form from matter; to materialize. [Obs.] --Sir T. Browne.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT