Middle English Dictionary Entry

mā̆tē̆r(e n.
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Entry Info

Forms mā̆tē̆r(e n. Also matter, matir(e, mat(t)ure, matier(e, materi(e.
Etymology L māteria & OF matiere, matere, matire, materie.

Definitions (Senses and Subsenses)

1.
(a) Physical substance, matter; material; ~ subget, the matter or substance of which a thing consists; bodilich (ertheli) ~, corporeality; ?also, element [quots.: a1393 & c1400]; (b) prime matter at the creation, matter without form, undifferentiated matter; prime matter as consisting of the four elements, primal elements; (c) phil. matter (as contrasted with form); (d) theol. the material element of a sacrament.
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2a.
(a) Material of which something is made or consists, fabric; stuff; building material; (b) a substance from which something is derived, raw material; base, basic constituent; ~ of (cler) colour, transparent matter, from which any color can be developed by the action of heat, cold, etc.; (c) a substance or fluid used in a chemical or alchemical operation; ingredient, element; ?a mixture of ingredients [quot.: CT.CY. G.1232]: (d) material for fire to work in, fuel, kindling.
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2b.
A substance from which something grows or develops organically; the constituent material of an organ or part of the body; nucleus, source.
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2c.
A thing, an object.
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3.
(a) A piece of wood, log; wood, timber; (b) agr. a growing shoot, branch; stock; also fig.
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4.
(a) A bodily fluid; nutritive or humoral fluid in the venous blood; ~ of nourishinge; seminal fluid; spermatic ~; also fig.; (b) a bodily fluid which causes ulcers, corruption, or disease; any morbid fluid in the body; corrupt or excessive nutritive fluid in the blood (as a source of ulcers or disease); an accumulation of morbid fluid in an ulcer or some part of the body; decaying matter, pus; discharge; (c) semi-fluid matter in the stomach, stomach contents, chyme; (d) nutritive fluid in a plant.
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5a.
(a) A piece of business, affair; activity, enterprise; event, situation, circumstances; maken no ~ to, to be of no interest to (sb.), make no difference to (sb.); what the ~ was, what the difficulty was, what was the problem; (b) a matter of dispute or argument; grievance, claim; ~ of questioun; meven ~, to stir up trouble; (c) law legal issue; suit, plea, legal proceedings; materes of lawe, legal issues; ~ in lawe, judicial proceedings; ~ of record, legal issue which can be resolved from some existing record.
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5b.
A narrative, exposition, discourse; tale, story; account, report; discussion, talk.
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5c.
(a) A subject of discussion, exposition, or private reflection; one of the subjects dealt with in a literary work; scole ~, scholastic question, academic matter; (b) meven (mingen) of a ~, to raise or broach a topic, discuss a question, talk about a subject; meven ~ (his materes), melen of their materes, menen (meven) of materes, etc.; meven..of that ~, talk to (sb.) about an issue, broach a subject to (sb.); breken the ~ to, disclose the mater to (sb.), explain an issue to (sb.).
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5d.
(a) The subject matter of a literary work; facts or ideas expressed, content, substance; main theme, argument; meaning or import of what is said or written; in this ~, in this vein, to this effect; meven to mi ~, to turn to my main theme; turnen til oure ~, turnen ayen to mi ~, repairen til his ~, etc.; scole ~, academic discussion, material relating to the schools; (b) subject matter (events, ideas, stories, etc.) or subjects awaiting expression or exposition; material, source material; (c) the field of investigation of a subject or science; subject matter; subject, area, field; judicial matere(s, astrology, astrological lore.
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6.
Cause, reason; grounds; occasion, opportunity; ~ (for) to, reason or grounds to (be or do sth.); ~ of, cause or occasion of (sth.), reason or grounds for (sth.); cause and ~, ~ and cause, cause and reason; no ~ ne cause, no cause ne ~, etc.; yeven ~, to give cause.
Show 28 Quotations
7.
(a) Essential character, nature, disposition; (b) state, condition.
Show 12 Quotations

Supplemental Materials (draft)

  • a1500(?1451) Petrarch Secret.(Add 60577)3/17 : Suffre me to saye..myn entente..; the matyer þat Y purpose..to trete Is callyd 'Þe Secrete Conflycte of my Conscyence.'
Note: This, like several of the quots. under sense 5d.(a), might well merit the semantic field label rhet., since in them entente approaches the status of a technical term, = L materia libri (as opposed to a book's entente).

Supplemental Materials (draft)

  • ?a1500 *Chauliac(5) (Peterh 118)66a/b : Ȝif we will prouoke þe mater we shall open þe veynes beneþe oþer scarifie þe braunes of þe legge in tyme of custumabell meuynge.
    • Note: gloss?
  • a1486 Sln.Bk.Hawking (Sln 3488)141 : For thou shalt fynde within him, as thoughit were the maw of a peion, and gader that oute and litte hit And then thou shalt finde within that a fowle mater.
    • Note: Additional quote(s)

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc., see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. materie.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc., see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. matter.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 4.(a)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. matter of nourishing.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 4.(a)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. spermatic materie.

Supplemental Materials (draft)

Note: Med., etc. (sense 4.(a)), see further J.Norri, Dictionary of Medical Vocabulary, s.v. spermatic matter.

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