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matter

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The definition of matter is what something is made of, what all physical things are made of, or something important or a problem.

(noun)

An example of matter is a dining table made of wood.
An example of matter is everything we see being made of particles of elements and atoms.
An example of a matter is an important document that needs to be signed by a certain date.

See matter in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun

what a thing is made of; constituent substance or material
what all (material) things are made of; whatever occupies space and is perceptible to the senses in some way: in modern physics, matter and energy are regarded as equivalents, mutually convertible according to Einstein's formula, E = mc (i.e., energy equals mass multiplied by the square of the velocity of light); in dualistic thinking, matter is regarded as the opposite of mind, spirit, etc.
any specified sort of substance: coloring matter
material of thought or expression; what is spoken or written, regarded as distinct from how it is spoken or written; content, as distinguished from manner, style, or form
an amount or quantity, usually indefinite: a matter of a few days
1. something that is the subject of discussion, concern, action, etc.; thing or affair: business matters
2. cause, occasion, or grounds: no matter for jesting
the body of heroic stories and legends, as contained in a folk epic, regarded as central to a culture or literature: the King Arthur stories make up the matter of Britain
1. an important affair; thing of some moment or significance
2. importance; moment; significance: it's of no matter
an unfavorable state of affairs; trouble; difficulty: with the: something seems to be the matter
documents, letters, etc. sent, or to be sent, by mail; mail: second-class matter
a substance discharged by the body; specif., pus
Law something that is to be proved
Philos. that which has yet to take on form; undifferentiated substance of reality or experience
Printing
1. written material prepared, or to be prepared, for printing; copy
2. copy ready to be printed

Origin: ME matiere < OFr < L materia, material, stuff, wood (< base of mater, mother), orig., the growing trunk of a tree

intransitive verb

to be of importance or consequence; have significance: the things that matter to one
to form and discharge pus; suppurate

See matter in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun

a. Something that occupies space and can be perceived by one or more senses; a physical body, a physical substance, or the universe as a whole.
b. Physics Something that has mass and exists as a solid, liquid, gas, or plasma.
A specific type of substance: inorganic matter.
Discharge or waste, such as pus or feces, from a living organism.
Philosophy In Aristotelian and Scholastic use, that which is in itself undifferentiated and formless and which, as the subject of change and development, receives form and becomes substance.
The substance of thought or expression as opposed to the manner in which it is stated or conveyed.
A subject of concern, feeling, or action: matters of foreign policy; a personal matter. See Synonyms at subject.
Trouble or difficulty: What's the matter with your car?
An approximated quantity, amount, or extent: The construction will last a matter of years.
Something printed or otherwise set down in writing: reading matter.
Something sent by mail.
Printing
a. Composed type.
b. Material to be set in type.

intransitive verb mat·tered, mat·ter·ing, mat·ters

To be of importance: “Love is most nearly itself/When here and now cease to matter” (T.S. Eliot). See Synonyms at count¹.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English

Origin: , from Old French matere

Origin: , from Latin māteria, wood, timber, matter

Origin: , from māter, mother (because the woody part was seen as the source of growth); see māter- in Indo-European roots

See matter in Ologies

Matter

allomorphism

variant crystalline structure in a chemical compound. —allomorphic, adj.

allotropism, allotropy

the quality of certain substances to exist in more than one form, with different properties in each form. — allotropic, allotropical, adj.

hylozoism

Philosophy. the doctrine that all matter has life. —hylozoist, n. —hylozoistic, adj.

materialism

1. the philosophical theory that regards matter and its phenomena as the only reality and explains all occurrences, including the mental, as due to material agencies.

2. attention to or emphasis on material objects, needs, and considerations, with a disinterest in or rejection of intellectual and spiritual values. —materialist, n. —materialistic, adj.

monism

Metaphysics. any of various theories holding that there is only one basic substance or principle that is the ground of reality. —monist, n. — monistic, monistical, adj.

rheology

Chemistry and Geology. the study of the flow and deformation of colloids, especially pastes. —rheologist, n. —rheologic, rheological, adj.

somatology

Obsolete, the branch of physics that studies the properties of matter. Also called somatics.

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