Meaning of "matter" in the English dictionary

ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD MATTER

(N), C16 (vb): from Latin māteria cause, substance, esp wood, or a substance that produces something else; related to māter mother.

Etymology is the study of the origin of words and their changes in structure and significance.

PRONUNCIATION OF MATTER

matter  [ˈmætə]

GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF MATTER

Matter is a verb and can also act as a noun.

A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

The verb is the part of the sentence that is conjugated and expresses action and state of being.

See the conjugation of the verb matter in English.

WHAT DOES MATTER MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Matter

Before the 20th century, the term matter included ordinary matter composed of atoms, and excluded other energy phenomena such as light or sound. This concept of matter may be generalized from atoms to include any objects having mass even when at rest, but this is ambiguous because an object's mass can arise from its constituents' motion and interaction energies. Thus, matter does not have a universal definition, nor is it a fundamental concept, in physics today. Matter is also used loosely as a general term for the substance that makes up all observable physical objects. The everyday objects that we can bump into or squeeze are composed of atoms. This atomic matter is in turn made up of interacting subatomic particles—usually a nucleus of protons and neutrons, and a cloud of orbiting electrons. Typically, science considers these composite particles matter because they have both rest mass and volume. By contrast, massless particles, such as photons, are not considered matter, because they have neither rest mass nor volume.

Definition of matter in the English dictionary

The first definition of matter in the dictionary is that which makes up something, esp a physical object; material. Other definition of matter is substance that occupies space and has mass, as distinguished from substance that is mental, spiritual, etc. Matter is also substance of a specified type.

CONJUGATION OF THE VERB TO MATTER

PRESENT

Present

I matter

you matter

he/she/it matters

we matter

you matter

they matter

Present continuous

I am mattering

you are mattering

he/she/it is mattering

we are mattering

you are mattering

they are mattering

Present perfect

I have mattered

you have mattered

he/she/it has mattered

we have mattered

you have mattered

they have mattered

Present perfect continuous

I have been mattering

you have been mattering

he/she/it has been mattering

we have been mattering

you have been mattering

they have been mattering

Present tense is used to refer to circumstances that exist at the present time or over a period that includes the present time. The present perfect refers to past events, although it can be considered to denote primarily the resulting present situation rather than the events themselves.

PAST

Past

I mattered

you mattered

he/she/it mattered

we mattered

you mattered

they mattered

Past continuous

I was mattering

you were mattering

he/she/it was mattering

we were mattering

you were mattering

they were mattering

Past perfect

I had mattered

you had mattered

he/she/it had mattered

we had mattered

you had mattered

they had mattered

Past perfect continuous

I had been mattering

you had been mattering

he/she/it had been mattering

we had been mattering

you had been mattering

they had been mattering

Past tense forms express circumstances existing at some time in the past,

FUTURE

Future

I will matter

you will matter

he/she/it will matter

we will matter

you will matter

they will matter

Future continuous

I will be mattering

you will be mattering

he/she/it will be mattering

we will be mattering

you will be mattering

they will be mattering

Future perfect

I will have mattered

you will have mattered

he/she/it will have mattered

we will have mattered

you will have mattered

they will have mattered

Future perfect continuous

I will have been mattering

you will have been mattering

he/she/it will have been mattering

we will have been mattering

you will have been mattering

they will have been mattering

The future is used to express circumstances that will occur at a later time.

CONDITIONAL

Conditional

I would matter

you would matter

he/she/it would matter

we would matter

you would matter

they would matter

Conditional continuous

I would be mattering

you would be mattering

he/she/it would be mattering

we would be mattering

you would be mattering

they would be mattering

Conditional perfect

I would have matter

you would have matter

he/she/it would have matter

we would have matter

you would have matter

they would have matter

Conditional perfect continuous

I would have been mattering

you would have been mattering

he/she/it would have been mattering

we would have been mattering

you would have been mattering

they would have been mattering

Conditional or "future-in-the-past" tense refers to hypothetical or possible actions.

IMPERATIVE

Imperative

you matter
we let´s matter
you matter

The imperative is used to form commands or requests.

NONFINITE VERB FORMS

Infinitive

to matter

Past participle

mattered

Present Participle

mattering

Infinitive shows the action beyond temporal perspective. The present participle or gerund shows the action during the session. The past participle shows the action after completion.

SYNONYMS OF «MATTER»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «matter» and belong to the same grammatical category.

synonyms of matter

affair · amount · argument · body · bother · burden · business · complication · concern · consequence · content · count · difficulty · discharge · distress · episode · event · gist · import · importance · incident · interest · issue · make a difference · material · moment · note · occurrence · pith · problem · proceeding · purport · purulence · pus · quantity · question · secretion · sense · significance · situation · stuff · subject · substance · sum · suppuration · text · thesis · thing · topic · transaction · trouble · uphill · upset · weight · worry

TRANSLATION OF MATTER

Find out the translation of matter to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.

The translations of matter from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «matter» in English.

• Translator English - Chinese: 事件
• Translator English - Spanish: materia
• English: matter
• Translator English - Hindi: मामला
• Translator English - Arabic: مَسْأَلَةٌ
• Translator English - Russian: дело
• Translator English - Portuguese: assunto
• Translator English - Bengali: ব্যাপার
• Translator English - French: matière
• Translator English - Malay: Perkara
• Translator English - German: Materie
• Translator English - Japanese: 物質
• Translator English - Korean: 문제
• Translator English - Javanese: Prakara
• Translator English - Vietnamese: vấn đề
• Translator English - Tamil: விஷயம்
• Translator English - Marathi: बाब
• Translator English - Turkish: madde
• Translator English - Italian: questione
• Translator English - Polish: materia
• Translator English - Ukrainian: справа
• Translator English - Romanian: chestiune
• Translator English - Greek: ύλη
• Translator English - Afrikaans: saak
• Translator English - Swedish: sak
• Translator English - Norwegian: grunnstoff

10 QUOTES WITH «MATTER»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word matter.

1

Ben Affleck

My kids aren't celebrities. They never made that bargain. We were offered a lot of money to sell pictures of our kids when they were born. You'll notice there aren't any. I make no judgment about people who decide differently; a lot of them give the money to charity. For me, it was a matter of principle.

2

Steve Allen

If the Old Testament were a reliable guide in the matter of capital punishment, half the people in the United States would have to be killed tomorrow.

3

Dave Attell

Doesn't matter what you say or do; people can always find a way to call you a dick.

4

Fredrik Bajer

To read the report of a discussion in which arguments for and against are presented, in which a subject has been covered from different points of view, with new ideas advanced - this is far more instructive than to read a brief account of the resolution passed on the matter.

5

Samantha Barks

It's important to be able to keep things fresh, no matter what age you are, or how many years you've been in the industry.

6

Mary Catherine Bateson

No matter how happily a woman may be married, it always pleases her to discover that there is a really nice man who wishes she were not.

7

Gerry Beckley

I think if you're writing from the heart, very often, the subject matter will adjust as you age... but you try to write the best song you can possibly write. For us, we have the same basic elements that make up the America sound.

8

David R. Brower

The Sierra Club is a very good and a very powerful force for conservation and, as a matter of fact, has grown faster since I left than it was growing while I was there! It must be doing something right.

9

Julia Cameron

Faith is almost the bottom line of creativity; it requires a leap of faith any time we undertake a creative endeavor, whether this is going to the easel, or the page, or onto the stage - or for that matter, in a homelier way, picking out the right fabric for the kitchen curtains, which is also a creative act.

10

James Carville

I think Ralph Nader is the biggest liar in American politics when he said it didn't matter who was president.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «MATTER»

Discover the use of matter in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to matter and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.

Vibrant Matter: A Political Ecology of Things

In Vibrant Matter the political theorist Jane Bennett, renowned for her work on nature, ethics, and affect, shifts her focus from the human experience of things to things themselves.

Jane Bennett, 2009

Bodies that Matter: On the Discursive Limits of "sex"

Her erudition is outstanding, and she engages with a broad sweep of texts, bringing exciting interpretations to all of her readings. This book will be essential reading in feminism, cultural studies, philosophy and political theory.

Judith Butler, 1993

Does It Matter?: Essays on Man's Relation to Materiality

This classic series of essays represents Alan Watts's thinking on the astonishing problems caused by our dysfunctional relationship with the material environment.

Alan W. Watts, 2010

A Matter of Interpretation: Federal Courts and the Law: ...

This essay is followed by four commentaries by Professors Gordon Wood, Laurence Tribe, Mary Ann Glendon, and Ronald Dworkin, who engage Justice Scalia's ideas about judicial interpretation from varying standpoints.

Antonin Scalia, Amy Gutmann, 1998

The Four Things That Matter Most - 10th Anniversary Edition: ...

His insights and stories help us to forgive, appreciate, love, and celebrate one another more fully. The inspiring stories in The Four Things That Matter Most demonstrate the usefulness of the Four Things in a wide range of life situations.

Ira Byock, 2004

Writing Matter: From the Hands of the English Renaissance

“Some 25 years ago Derrida called for a ‘cultural graphology’ which would study the material practices, institutions, and ideologies of writing. Goldberg takes up this call. . .

Jonathan Goldberg, 1990

What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the ...

One of “our most insightful social observers”* cracks the great political mystery of our time: how conservatism, once a marker of class privilege, became the creed of millions of ordinary Americans With his acclaimed wit and acuity, ...

Thomas Frank, 2007

Animals and why They Matter

Whether considering vegetarianism, women's rights, or the "humanity" of pets, this book goes to the heart of the question of why all animals matter.

Mary Midgley, 1998

Space, Time, Matter

In this classic text first published in German in 1918-this is a translation by HENRY L. BROSE (1890-1965) of the 1921 fourth edition-Weyl considers the role of Euclidean space in physics and the mathematics of Einstein's general theory of ...

Hermann Weyl, 2010

Making Social Science Matter: Why Social Inquiry Fails and ...

New approach demonstrating how social science can be successful, focusing on context, values, and power.

Bent Flyvbjerg, 2001

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «MATTER»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term matter is used in the context of the following news items.

Dead galaxies in Coma Cluster may be packed with dark matter

Galaxies in a cluster roughly 300 million light-years from Earth could contain as much as 100 times more dark matter than visible matter, ... «Astronomy Magazine, Jul 15»

Clinton on Facebook: 'Black lives matter' and other takeaways

Clinton on Facebook: 'Black lives matter' and other takeaways. By Eric Bradner and Dan Merica, CNN. Updated 2:53 PM ET, Tue July 21, 2015. Clinton waves ... «CNN, Jul 15»

Piers Morgan Tweets 'All Lives Matter' and Gets Into It With Black …

People are questioning the premise behind the “Black Lives Matter” ... suggests a superiority and that “All Lives Matter” is more appropriate. «The Root, Jul 15»

Bernie Sanders And Black Lives Matter: 2016 Presidential …

On July 18 in Phoenix, Sanders was heckled by Black Lives Matter activists who wanted the Vermont senator to speak more about racial ... «International Business Times, Jul 15»

Nadella: Despite cloud push, on-premises products still matter to …

Microsoft is pushing hard to get businesses to use its Azure cloud platform, but CEO Satya Nadella said Tuesday that the company hasn't given ... «PCWorld, Jul 15»

Climate change 'a matter of conscience' at Paris summit

Mankind's relationship with nature was the focus of the Climate Summit of Conscience in Paris, hosted by French President Francois Hollande ... «euronews, Jul 15»

Mastodon Cancel International Tour Dates Due to 'Personal Family …

Some unfortunate news has been released concerning both Mastodon and the band's fans. Due to a “personal family matter,” Mastodon have ... «Loudwire, Jul 15»

Apple's Earnings Matter Even More Than You Think

No company produces bigger profits than Apple Inc.AAPL -0.71% Likewise, no company contributes more to the profit picture of the S&P 500 ... «Wall Street Journal, Jul 15»

The Motivating Forces Behind Black Lives Matter

We are sitting at La Pintoresca Park in north Pasadena, where Jasmine Richards is the city's Black Lives Matter chapter leader. Browline ... «GOOD Magazine, Jul 15»

On CNN, Montel Williams Blasts 'Black Lives Matter' Protesters

You know, lives matter in America. Black lives definitely matter. But every life in this country matters – especially the lives of the soldiers who put ... «NewsBusters, Jul 15»