mater

[mey-ter]

See more synonyms for mater on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural ma·ters, ma·tres

[mey-treez] /ˈmeɪ triz/.

British Informal. mother¹.
the backing holding the movable parts of an astrolabe.

Origin of mater

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

mater dolorosa

[mah-ter doh-loh-roh-sah; English mey-ter doh-luh-roh-suh]

noun Latin.

the sorrowful mother.
(initial capital letters) the mother of Christ sorrowing for her son.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for mater

dingy, lackluster, murky, shadowy, faint, cloudy, dark, gloomy, fuzzy, dull, vague, blurred, gray, dusk, overcast, faded, obscured, pale, mat, muted

Examples from the Web for mater

Contemporary Examples of mater

And then there's Laurie (Amy Brenneman), the Garveys' mater familias.
‘The Leftovers’ Review: A Fever Dream You Can’t Wake Up From
Andrew Romano
June 29, 2014
Now she, along with Jean Kennedy Smith, is also Mater Familias to the grieving clan.
Camelot's Last Lady
Jerry Oppenheimer
August 26, 2009
Jimmy is rooting for Arizona State this year since his alma mater, UNLV, didn't get a bid.
Bracketology with Jimmy Kimmel
Pat O'Brien
March 16, 2009

Historical Examples of mater

Dad and the mater both say the same now—they're more severe than I was.
The Spenders
Harry Leon Wilson
"The mater told me you'd another thing on the stocks," Geoff went on.
The Education of Eric Lane
Stephen McKenna
The mater learned it this afternoon and sprung it at dinner.
Cap'n Warren's Wards
Joseph C. Lincoln
Don't let the Mater and Pater get the wind up about my personal safety.
War Letters of a Public-School Boy
Paul Jones.
Of course you are going to the mater's with Miss Lindsey and me for tea, per usual?
Blue-grass and Broadway
Maria Thompson Daviess

British Dictionary definitions for mater

mater

noun

British public school slang, often facetious a word for mother 1

Word Origin for mater

C16: from Latin

mater dolorosa

noun

the Virgin Mary sorrowing for the dead Christ, esp as depicted in art

Word Origin for mater dolorosa

Latin: sorrowful mother

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