matted
1 Americanadjective
adjective
-
tangled into a thick mass
matted hair
-
covered with or formed of matting
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of matted1
First recorded in 1600–10; mat 1 + -ed 2
Origin of matted2
Explanation
Matted things are snarled into a twisted mat. If you never brush your long hair, it will become matted and soon you will be in dreadlocks. Silky hair easily becomes matted, and so does the fur of long-haired animals. Many sheep are covered with a dense, matted wool that is sheared off every year and spun into yarn for making sweaters and blankets. The adjective matted comes from mat, which originally meant "tangled mass," from the Late Latin matta, "mat made of rushes."
Vocabulary lists containing matted
"There Will Come Soft Rains" by Ray Bradbury
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I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter
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The Bridge Home
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Matted in dead leaves, it wound past snatches of green fern that spindled down the hillsides.
From Washington Post • Feb. 26, 2022
Matted and ribbed wood ceilings suggest the houseboats that ply the rivers and backwaters of the region.
From New York Times • Oct. 12, 2021
Donna Drimer, who owns Matted, a boutique on Vernon Boulevard that sells handmade gifts, jewelry and art frames, recently used Groupon to advertise her store.
From New York Times • Nov. 8, 2011
Matted dark hair hung down from his filthy head, framing a pale, scratched face that shone with sweat.
From "The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin)" by James Dashner
Matted hair that looked like it had never met a comb stuck out like petals around a face that seemed much too large for his skinny body.
From "The Bridge Home" by Padma Venkatraman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
