rhizoverbBeta
DictionaryRoot: materia
Latin

materia

material, substance, or timber

Forms

  • materia
  • materi- — Used before other endings.

Origin

Related to Latin mater, “mother,” though the exact early semantic development is uncertain.

Note

Timber as usable substance helped the word broaden to material generally.

6 / 8
Adult surrounded by shopping bags luxury watch boxes and stacks of money ignores a friend offering conversation, concern for possessions clear.
noun

materialism

muh-TEER-ee-uh-liz-uhm/məˈtɪriəlɪzəm/

Preoccupation with wealth, possessions, and physical comforts.

Etymology
materiLatinmaterial, substance, or timber
+alLatinof, relating to
+ismEnglisha practice, system, process, or condition

Originally a doctrine that only matter exists, materialism broadened into an outlook centered on material interests. It then came to describe a life focused on possessions and consumer goods rather than spiritual values.

Full entry

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