Word
mater
US/ˈmætɝ/
UK/mˈeɪtɐ/
Definitions
01mother
n. an old-fashioned and slightly funny way to say 'mother'.
n. a colloquial and now largely archaic term for one's mother, typically associated with upper-class British English.
“He wrote a long letter to his mater while he was away at boarding school.”
“In the early twentieth-century novel, the protagonist frequently referred to his mater with a mixture of affection and formal distance.”
British English · Humorous · Archaic · Slang
Teaching tip
This sense is almost exclusively found in period literature or used ironically today; learners should avoid using it in modern conversation.
Antonyms
02brain membrane
n. one of the three layers of tissue that cover and protect the brain.
n. any of the three membranes (dura mater, arachnoid mater, and pia mater) that envelop the brain and spinal cord.
“The doctor explained that the infection had reached the dura mater.”
“The surgeon carefully retracted the pia mater to access the underlying neural tissue during the delicate procedure.”
Technical
Usage
Usually appears as part of a compound term like 'dura mater' or 'pia mater'.
Synonyms
03one who mates
n. a person or animal that joins with another to have babies or to work together.
n. an organism or agent that performs the act of mating.
“The researcher observed that the strongest mater in the group had the most offspring.”
“In this specific species of bird, the primary mater often travels long distances to find a suitable nesting site.”
Technical
Real-World Examples
“He cut ties with the University of Kentucky, his alma mater, after the school accepted $7m for a new basketball dormitory from a group of donors organized by a coal company president.” “These schools admitted and trained Presbyterians who, as adults, became the rank and file of their congregations – and, as alumni, donated to their alma maters.” Etymology
From Latin māter (“mother”), partly via Late Middle English matere. Doublet of mata and mother. Ancestor of matrix.
From mate + -er.
See 'mater.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.