rhizoverbBeta
DictionarymaterialSubstance
noun / adjective

material

muh-TEER-ee-uhl/məˈtɪriəl/

The physical substance from which something is formed.

Wood is the material this woodworker uses to build a chair.

Close woodworker builds chair from timber, boards and finished matching wood grain show material.
Etymology
materiLatinmatter, stuff, timber
+alLatinrelating to

Materia could mean timber as well as the substance something is made from. Material first expressed “belonging to matter”; as a noun, it named the substance itself rather than a quality of it.

In context

Training Hands Academy0:48
material that's used to build houses and material that's
Beginner Woodworking and Carpentry Terminology Part 1

More examples

  • This jacket is made from a waterproof material.
  • The builders order enough materials for the new porch.
  • The sculpture gives a material form to an abstract idea.

Forms

material · materials

materialize verb — To take on a physical form.

Similar words

substance
Emphasizes what something consists of, not its intended use.
matter
Refers broadly to physical stuff rather than specific building substances.
physical
Describes tangible existence, often in contrast with mental experience.