English
material
Material comes from Middle English material, from Late Latin māteriālis, from Latin māteria ‘wood, material, substance’, from māter ‘mother’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmāter‘mother’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEmāteria‘wood, material, substance’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEmāteriālis
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500material‘made of matter’
- Englishearliest quotation 1642material
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmāter‘mother’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEmāteria‘wood, material, substance’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEmāteriālis
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500material‘made of matter’
- Englishearliest quotation 1642material
Earliest quotation: 1642, Daniel Rogers …, Naaman the Syrian: “[…] I beleeve that as they ſay of the…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr ‘mother’
through Latin māter ‘mother’
matrix, matron, madrigal, 17 more
through Latin māteria ‘wood, material, substance’
Today it means
adj Of, relating to, or consisting of matter, especially physical.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin māter / material