What does "matter" mean?

1. (a situation or subject) a situation, subject, or problem that you are discussing or dealing with. 2. (physical substance) the physical stuff that everything in the universe is made of. 3. (legal case) a specific legal case or piece of work handled by a lawyer. 4. (approximate amount) a small or specific amount of something, like time or distance.

matter — meaning, definition & examples

Word

01a situation or subject

A2 · Elementary Countable noun

n. a situation, subject, or problem that you are discussing or dealing with.

n. a subject under consideration or a situation that is problematic or of concern.

“I will discuss this matter with my manager during our meeting tomorrow.”

“The committee spent several hours debating the matter of budget allocations before reaching a final consensus.”

Synonyms

affair issue topic

02physical substance

B2 · Upper Intermediate Uncountable noun Science

n. the physical stuff that everything in the universe is made of.

n. physical substance in general, as distinct from mind and spirit; in physics, that which occupies space and possesses rest mass.

“The universe is made up of matter and energy.”

“Dark matter remains one of the most significant mysteries in modern astrophysics because it does not emit or reflect light.”

Synonyms

substance material

Antonyms

spirit nothingness

03legal case

C1 · Advanced Countable noun Law Formal · Technical

n. a specific legal case or piece of work handled by a lawyer.

n. a specific legal case or transaction handled by a legal professional on behalf of a client.

“The lawyer is currently working on several different legal matters.”

“The firm was disqualified from the matter due to a potential conflict of interest involving a former partner.”

Synonyms

case proceedings

04approximate amount

B1 · Intermediate Countable noun

n. a small or specific amount of something, like time or distance.

n. an approximate amount or quantity, typically used with 'of' to indicate a small scale.

“The whole repair was finished in a matter of minutes.”

“It is simply a matter of time before the market recovers from the recent economic downturn.”

Synonyms

amount quantity

Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “matter” in context.

01. complicate matter

From Middle English matere, mater, from Anglo-Norman matere, materie, from Old French materie, matiere, from Latin māteria (“wood”), from māter (“mother”), in which case cognate with Old Armenian մայր (mayr, “cedar”) and մայրի (mayri, “forest”). Doublet of Madeira, mata, mater, matrix, and mother. Displaced Middle English andweorc, andwork (“material, matter”), from Old English andweorc (“matter, substance, material”), Old English intinga (“matter, affair, business”).

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

as a matter of fact for that matter mother no matter no matter what physics