(a) Physical substance, matter; material; mater subget, the matter or substance of which a thing consists; bodilich (ertheli) mater, corporeality; ?also, element [quots.: a1393 & c1400]; (b) prime……

(a) A small, portable writing tablet made from a slab of wood or other hard material, often covered with wax in which the characters are incised; pl. a set of tablets, usu. tied or hinged together, a……