Longman Dictionary English

Explore Material & textiles Topic
Word family noun material materialism materialist materials materialization adjective material immaterial materialistic materialist verb materialize adverb materialistically materially
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Related topics: Material & textiles, Daily life, Industry, Technology
ldoce_218_jmaterialma‧te‧ri‧al1 /məˈtɪəriəl $ -ˈtɪr-/ ●●● S1 W1 noun 1 [countable, uncountable]TIMD cloth used for making clothes, curtains etc SYN fabric curtain material scraps of material a cape made of a soft material2 [countable, uncountable]TI a solid substance such as wood, plastic, or metal materials like wood or stoneorganic/plant material Animals depend on plant material for food. harmful radioactive material a paper company which imports raw materials (=substances which have not been treated) from North America. recycled material3 [uncountable] (also materials [plural])TDO something/TAKE ACTION the things that are used for making or doing somethingreading/writing etc material(s) Videos often make good teaching material. a supply of building materials artists’ materials4 [uncountable]INFORMATION information or ideas used in books, films etc His act contains a lot of new material.material for Anita is collecting material for a novel. the raw material (=information that has not been carefully examined) for an article5 → officer/executive etc materialTHESAURUSfor making clothes etcmaterial noun [countable, uncountable] cloth used for making clothes, curtains etcShe bought some pretty dress material.fabric noun [uncountable] cloth used for making clothes, curtains etcMan-made fabrics such as polyester are easy to wash and iron.furnishing fabricscloth noun [uncountable] woven material, especially material made from natural substances such as cotton and wool, which has not yet been made into any other productsThe main trade was the production of woollen cloth.textiles noun [plural] formal a general word for all types of cloth – used especially when talking about the business of producing and selling themTextiles are one of Mexico’s main exports.the textile industrya solid or liquid substancematerial noun [countable, uncountable] a substance, especially one that can be used for making thingsbuilding materialsThe island has to import oil and other raw materials (=materials used for making things). radioactive materialsubstance noun [countable] a type of material such as a chemical or a mineralThe green colour of the leaf is due to a substance called chlorophyll.Dioxin is one of the most toxic substances known to man.matter noun [uncountable] formal a type of substance – used especially in the following phraseswaste matter from the bodyIt is important to add plenty of organic matter to the soil.People throw away lots of vegetable matter. stuff noun [uncountable] informal a substance – used especially when you do not know exactly what it isWhat’s that sticky stuff on the floor?
Examples from the Corpus
material• art material• The stories he collected became material for the biography he is now writing.• It is still prudent to re-condition bought materials.• The company supplies building materials such as bricks and cement.• building materials• The rubble of solid chilled material overlying the hot core naturally tends to insulate it, and it does so very efficiently.• Could I have six metres of that curtain material?• Appropriate educational material will continue to be co-ordinated, evaluated and distributed to schools as it becomes available.• There wasn't enough material to write a whole book.• A layer of insulating material should be placed between the panels and the solid wall.• Menken is collaborating on the new material with Tim Rice.• The chairs are made of recycled material.• I've been unable to find any reference material on the subject of interracial adoptions.• It smelt not only of mud and rotting materials, but also the unmistakable odour of human waste.• T-shirt material• She was wearing a long black dress made of some silky material.• Some materials are easier to dye than others.• Steel is a stronger material than iron.• Samples of the material were collected and sent for analysis while crews worked to remove the material.• In any trial, the prosecution must prove beyond reasonable doubt that the material is obscene.• However, even this material would not be strong enough if the balloon was designed along conventional lines.• No one is advocating producing more of this material, as some fear.• There's a basket there with some books and writing materials.raw materials• Or dealing with suppliers that ignore requests for raw materials.• Similarly, he has the rights and obligations of a buyer as against the person from whom he purchases his raw materials.• The range of raw materials for the body would be extensive.• Tom has finally pleased the invisible hand by taking raw materials and producing something worth more than what he started with.• Knowledge, power and economic resources are the raw materials of social action, and they are all unequally available.• And today is your final chance to glimpse these raw materials of our landscape.• No longer is the customer at the end of the line, nor does the supplier only relate to raw materials.• Cans are made of valuable raw materials - aluminium, steel and tin which are rarely recycled.building materials• Old garage doors are treated as building materials.• After coal, building materials figured importantly among bulk cargoes.• Similarly, a child with a visual-spatial difficulty may not easily notice how different building materials or action figures fit together.• There was no shortage of excellent building materials from varied marbles to stone, brick and volcanic substances.• They scrounge wiring, plasterboard, wood, all kinds of building materials from local firms and are rebuilding the charred structure.• There are ropes, buckets and other building materials scattered about the floor of the Wheel Room.• We have continued to develop the sale of high quality timber into those branches which previously sold building materials only.• We proceeded to send some one to Saigon to scrounge up building materials.raw material• It also provides three levels of stock, i.e. raw materials, work in progress and finished goods. 4.• Every raw material meanders thrOugh such a network.• Knowledge, power and economic resources are the raw materials of social action, and they are all unequally available.• Drawing on his manufacturing backgrounds he figured the raw materials cost less than $ 15.• We should not however confuse the transaction with the eventual use of the raw material.• And public opinion, the raw material of governing, is the engine of that evolution.• Dickinson's quiet life provides the raw material for her poetry.• Their raw material and energy costs would rise, while being deprived of their previous government subsidies.
Related topics: Law
materialmaterial2 ●○○ adjective [usually before noun] 1 NEEDrelating to your money, possessions, living conditions etc, rather than the needs of your mind or soul OPP spiritualmaterial goods/possessions/wealth etc The spiritual life is more important than material possessions. a society that places high importance on material rewards2 REAL/NOT FALSE OR ARTIFICIALrelating to the real world and physical objects, rather than religious or spiritual things OPP spiritual According to some, the material world is all that exists.3 lawSCL important and needing to be considered when making a decision OPP irrelevant material evidencematerial to facts material to the investigation4 IMPORTANT formal important and having a noticeable effect OPP immaterial material changes to the schedule → materially
Examples from the Corpus
material• At an individual or party level discourses not only mediate between material conditions and their interpretation but can organise experience itself.• Material damage to the ship was negligible.• Selfhood, in other words, has individual identity only as it exists in material form.• The search for human origins in the material record, by the techniques of archaeology, could begin.• The cocoon is another material resource used, directly or indirectly, for musical purposes.• a material witnessmaterial rewards• Finally, the satisfaction of the job is regarded by sentimental observers as sufficient compensation for the lack of material rewards.• The bureaucracy enjoys more material rewards and privileges than other sectors of society.• Just as material rewards are disappearing, job security is barely a memory and company loyalty a psychic fossil.• The data showed that information specialists' actions were often impelled not simply by material rewards or to avoid punishment.the material world• Flash heat, volcanism, lightning, wind, and waves all renew the material world.• His followers are to trust in the goodness and providence of their heavenly father and abandon their care about the material world.• Such scientists refuse to admit that here they are dealing with another level or scale of being in the material world.• The members of the second were practical men who were leaders and men of action in the material world.• These are no doubt spiritual matters, but they have their analogue in the material world.• The child's actions on the material world also provide a stimulus for conceptual development.• That meant he could project his spirit as he slept, and wander the material world and even the spirit lands.• For Marx the material world is the ultimate reality.material to• facts material to the investigationFrom Longman Business Dictionarymaterialma‧te‧ri‧al /məˈtɪəriəl-ˈtɪr-/ noun [countable usually plural] something you need to make or do somethingA shortage of building materials compounded escalating costs. → raw materialOrigin material2 (1300-1400) Late Latin materialis, from Latin materia; → MATTER1
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