English
matter
Matter comes from Middle English matere, from Anglo-Norman materie, from Old French materie, from Latin māteria ‘wood, matter’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmāteria1‘wood; matter’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400materie1
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400materie1
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500matere1‘matter’
- Englishearliest quotation a. 1587matter1
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, English matter
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: a. 1587, Philippe Sidnei [i.e., (please specify the folio): “Each slight sore mattereth.”.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmāteriaWiktionary, English matter‘wood; matter’
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400materieWiktionary, English matter
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400materieWiktionary, English matter
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500matereWiktionary, English matter‘matter’
- Englishearliest quotation a. 1587matterWiktionary, English matter. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: a. 1587, Philippe Sidnei [i.e., (please specify the folio): “Each slight sore mattereth.”
Word family
English words that share an ancestor with matter, grouped by the ancestor they share, most familiar first.
through Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr ‘mother’
through Latin māter ‘mother’
29 more relatives in the full family tree
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Today it means
noun Anything with mass and volume.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “matter”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.
Etymograph / Latin māteria / matter