immaterial

[ im-uh-teer-ee-uh l ]

/ ˌɪm əˈtɪər i əl /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR immaterial ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

of no essential consequence; unimportant.

not pertinent; irrelevant.

not material; incorporeal; spiritual.

Nearby words

Origin of immaterial

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Medieval Latin word immāteriālis. See im-², material

Related formsim·ma·te·ri·al·ly, adverbim·ma·te·ri·al·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for immaterial

It is immaterial if the infidel is a combatant or a civilian.
The CIA’s Wrong: Arming Rebels Works|Christopher Dickey|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The lack of evidence for HGH as an effective performance enhancer is just as immaterial as its illegality.
Major League Baseball’s Planned Suspensions Are Already a Bust|David Roth|June 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Whether blame is assigned to the failed follower or the failed leader is immaterial.
The Truth About Women in Combat|David Frum|March 1, 2013|DAILY BEAST
So as long as a lethal strike passes muster in constitutional terms, the location of the target is immaterial.
White Paper Suggests U.S. Could Launch Drones Into U.S. Cities|Kal Raustiala|February 17, 2013|DAILY BEAST

“Source” ends up feeling like an essentially virtual, Platonic, immaterial object.
Vanishingly Massive|Blake Gopnik|October 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST
If the colour of the heroine's eyes and the tint of her hair are immaterial to her career, omit such hackneyed data.
The Lure of the Pen|Flora Klickmann
It is immaterial whether it is payable in the place where it is drawn or not.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Slice 7|Various
All of which would be irrelevant, incompetent and immaterial if this were not a legal story.
Tutt and Mr. Tutt|Arthur Train
How would that be possible if consciousness were an immaterial entity, independent of these anatomical organs?
The Riddle of the Universe at the close of the nineteenth century|Ernst Haeckel
That is immaterial; the defense could have demanded the same thing.
The Awakening|Leo Nikoleyevich Tolstoy

British Dictionary definitions for immaterial

immaterial

/ (ˌɪməˈtɪərɪəl) /

adjective

of no real importance; inconsequential

not formed of matter; incorporeal; spiritual

Derived Formsimmateriality or immaterialness, nounimmaterially, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for immaterial

immaterial

adj.

late 14c., "spiritual, incorporeal," from Medieval Latin immaterialis "not consisting of matter, spiritual," from assimilated form of in- "not, opposite of" (see in- (1)) + Late Latin materialis (see material). Secondary sense of "unimportant" is first recorded 1690s from material in its 16c. sense of "important." Related: Immaterially.

immaterial

adjective

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of immaterial

Examples from the Web for immaterial

immaterial

adjective

immaterial