mater

American  

[may-ter] / ˈmeɪ tər /

noun

• maters,
  plural
• matres
  plural

1. British Informal. mother.

2. the backing holding the movable parts of an astrolabe.

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mater British  

/ ˈmeɪtə /

noun

1. slang:public_school a word for mother 1

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• maters
  plural
• matres
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of mater

First recorded in 1585–95, mater is from the Latin word māter

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mater maters matres

Chief political correspondent Josh Dawsey went back to his alma mater, the University of South Carolina, where the campus is booming but many students he spoke with are uneasy about their own economic futures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

CMU may not have the headline-grabbing power of say, Harvard University, Griffin’s alma mater, but it’s still a top-ranked school with resources, including a $3.5 billion endowment.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026

BBC Sport spoke to families at Wembley who have had multiple generations attend the same school and alumni who now live all over the US but travel thousands of miles to watch their alma mater.

From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026

California’s renewed belief largely stems from first-time skipper Tosh Lupoi, who has instilled enthusiasm at his alma mater since taking over for the fired Justin Wilcox in December.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2026

“I’m going to cut through the dura mater now. I want you to see something else.”

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

Some, such as investor Bill Ackman, have continued to needle their alma maters and refrain from giving.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

She has increased her charitable donations to her alma maters and where she taught, in addition to other organizations such as Doctors Without Borders and Habitat for Humanity.

From Barron's ● Oct. 26, 2025

Mr. Pagliuca had donated hundreds of millions of dollars to his alma maters, Duke University and Harvard, largely earmarked for science.

From New York Times ● Jan. 12, 2024

Before a Syracuse-Virginia Tech game matching the alma maters of his great uncle and father, Sturdivant gawked at the size of the players, the eighth-grader never thinking he could measure up.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2023

“Good man. But best not mention it to”—Hugo nodded through the garage wall—“the maters and the paters, or we'll spend the rest of the afternoon playing Ludo or the Game of Life under strict supervision.”

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

"You look pale, child!" cries mamma, anxious, like all pavidae matres.

From The Virginians by William Makepeace Thackeray

In Akenside's Pleasures of Imagination we find:—                      Hence, finally by night,      The village matres, round the blazing hearth      Suspend the infant audience with their tales,      Breathing astonishment.

From A Study of Fairy Tales by Laura F. Kready

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