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.

4 / 4
noun

materiality

muh-teer-ee-AL-uh-tee/mʌtˌɪriˈælɪti/

Importance or relevance to a decision or issue.

The broken joint's materiality outweighs the attractive upholstery when judging the chair's safety.

Materiality shown through the contrast between cosmetic details and a structural defect during a chair assessment: attractive upholstery is set aside while a broken load-bearing joint becomes the focus of the decision.
Etymology
materiLatinmaterial, substance, or timber
+alLatinof, relating to
+ityLatina quality or state

Matter can mean not only physical substance but also a subject under consideration. Materiality connects with that second meaning: it is the quality of being important to the matter at hand, not necessarily of being physical.

In context

Tony Bell7:19
the concept of materiality just is how large a number needs to be to impact your decision.
IFA1 – Intro to Intermediate Accounting – The Conceptual Framework Explained

More examples

  • Auditors assess the materiality of errors in the financial statements.
  • The committee questions the materiality of the change to its decision.
  • The insurer disputes the materiality of the omitted information.

Forms

materiality

material adjective — Important or relevant to an issue.

Similar words

relevance
Emphasizes connection to an issue rather than its importance.
importance
Expresses general significance without requiring relevance to a particular decision.