matin

[ mat-n ]

/ ˈmæt n /

noun

(often initial capital letter) matins. Also especially British, mattins. (usually used with a singular verb) Ecclesiastical.

the first of the seven canonical hours.
the service for it, properly beginning at midnight, but sometimes beginning at daybreak.
Also called Morning Prayer. the service of public prayer, said in the morning, in the Anglican Church.

Archaic. aubade.

adjective

Also mat·in·al. pertaining to the morning or to matins.

Words nearby matin

mathura, mathusala, matie, matilda, matilija poppy, matin, mating, mating ball, matins, matinée, matinée coat

Origin of matin

1200–50; Middle English matyn (plural matines) < Old French matin < Latin mātūtīnus matutinal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for matins

They were excellent persons of the kind that talk about matins and vespers, and attend both.
The Pool in the Desert|Sara Jeanette Duncan
Thither Ketil arrived just as the king was coming from matins.
Heimskringla|Snorri Sturlason
The MS. has "The lively lark my matins rung," and "sung" in the rhyme.
The Lady of the Lake|Sir Walter Scott
She heard them most frequently, she said, at the hour of compline and of matins, when the bells were ringing.
The Life of Joan of Arc, Vol. 1 and 2 (of 2)|Anatole France

Sometimes she wakened Lisa early at daybreak, dressed her hurriedly, and took her in secret to matins.
A House of Gentlefolk|Ivan Turgenev

British Dictionary definitions for matins (1 of 2)

matins

mattins

/ (ˈmætɪnz) /

noun (functioning as singular or plural)

mainly RC Church the first of the seven canonical hours of prayer, originally observed at night but now often recited with lauds at daybreak
the service of morning prayer in the Church of England

literary a morning song, esp of birds

Word Origin for matins

C13: from Old French, ultimately from Latin mātūtīnus of the morning, from Mātūta goddess of dawn

British Dictionary definitions for matins (2 of 2)

matin

mattin matinal

/ (ˈmætɪn) /

adjective

of or relating to matins

Word Origin for matin

C14: see matins

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