mater
noun
Simple meaning
An informal use of the Latin word for mother.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
mahterSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈmɑtɚ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
An informal use of the Latin word for mother; sometimes used by British schoolboys or used facetiously
anatomy
A meninx; the dura mater, arachnoid mater, or pia mater of the brain.
biology
Someone or something that mates.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C1 · Advanced (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: An informal use of the Latin word for mother; sometimes used by British schoolboys or used facetiously
Used this way, mater is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
The tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object.
With respect to material aspects.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
Great nature goddess of ancient Phrygia in Asia Minor.
Great nature goddess of ancient Phrygia in Asia Minor.
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.