'Material' definitions:

Definition of 'material'

(from WordNet)
adjective
Concerned with worldly rather than spiritual interests; "material possessions"; "material wealth"; "material comforts"
adjective
Derived from or composed of matter; "the material universe" [ant: immaterial, nonmaterial]
adjective
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]
adjective
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
adjective
Having material or physical form or substance; "that which is created is of necessity corporeal and visible and tangible" - Benjamin Jowett [syn: corporeal, material] [ant: immaterial, incorporeal]
adjective
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, real, material] [ant: insubstantial, unreal, unsubstantial]
noun
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" [syn: material, stuff]
noun
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"
noun
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, cloth, material, textile]
noun
Things needed for doing or making something; "writing materials"; "useful teaching materials"
noun
A person judged suitable for admission or employment; "he was university material"; "she was vice-presidential material"

Definition of 'Material'

From: GCIDE
  • Material \Ma*te"ri*al\, v. t. To form from matter; to materialize. [Obs.] --Sir T. Browne. [1913 Webster]

Definition of 'Material'

From: GCIDE
  • Material \Ma*te"ri*al\, n. The substance or matter of which anything is made or may be made. [1913 Webster]
  • 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. [1913 Webster]

Definition of 'Material'

From: GCIDE
  • Material \Ma*te"ri*al\, a. [L. materialis, fr. materia stuff, matter: cf. F. mat['e]riel. See Matter, and cf. Mat['e]riel.] [1913 Webster]
  • 1. Consisting of matter; not spiritual; corporeal; physical; as, material substance or bodies. [1913 Webster]
  • The material elements of the universe. --Whewell. [1913 Webster]
  • 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; as, material well-being; material comforts. [1913 Webster]
  • 3. Of solid or weighty character; not insubstantial; of consequence; not be dispensed with; important; significant. [1913 Webster]
  • Discourse, which was always material, never trifling. --Evelyn. [1913 Webster]
  • I shall, in the account of simple ideas, set down only such as are most material to our present purpose. --Locke. [1913 Webster]
  • 4. (Logic.) Pertaining to the matter, as opposed to the form, of a thing. See Matter. [1913 Webster]
  • Material cause. See under Cause.
  • Material evidence (Law), evidence which conduces to the proof or disproof of a relevant hypothesis. --Wharton. [1913 Webster]
  • Syn: Corporeal; bodily; important; weighty; momentous; essential. [1913 Webster]

Synonyms of 'material'

From: Moby Thesaurus