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definitions

matting

1
[mat-ing]
noun
  1. a coarse fabric of rushes, grass, straw, hemp, or the like, used for floor covering, wrapping material, etc.
  2. material for mats.
  3. mats collectively.
  4. the making of mats.

Origin of matting

1
First recorded in 1675–85; mat1 + -ing1

matting

2
[mat-ing]
noun
  1. a dull, slightly roughened surface, free from polish, produced by the use of a matte.

Origin of matting

2
First recorded in 1680–90; matte1 + -ing1

mat

1
[mat]
noun
  1. a piece of fabric made of plaited or woven rushes, straw, hemp, or similar fiber, or of some other pliant material, as rubber, used as a protective covering on a floor or other surface, to wipe the shoes on, etc.
  2. a smaller piece of material, often ornamental, set under a dish of food, a lamp, vase, etc.
  3. Sports.
    1. the padded canvas covering the entire floor of a wrestling ring, for protecting the contestants from injury when thrown.
    2. a thick pad placed on the floor for the protection of tumblers and others engaged in gymnastic sports.
  4. a thickly growing or thick and tangled mass, as of hair or weeds.
  5. a sack made of matting, as for coffee or sugar.
  6. a slablike footing of concrete, especially one for an entire building.
  7. a heavy mesh reinforcement for a concrete slab.
verb (used with object), mat·ted, mat·ting.
  1. to cover with or as if with mats or matting.
  2. to form into a mat, as by interweaving.
verb (used without object), mat·ted, mat·ting.
  1. to become entangled; form tangled masses.
Idioms
  1. go to the mat, to contend or struggle in a determined or unyielding way: The president is going to the mat with Congress over the proposed budget cuts.

Origin of mat

1
before 900; Middle English, Old English matte < Late Latin matta mat of rushes < Semitic; compare Hebrew mittāh bed
Related formsmat·less, adjective

matt

[mat]
adjective, noun, verb (used with object)
  1. matte1.

matte

1

or mat, matt

[mat]
adjective
  1. having a dull or lusterless surface: matte paint; a matte complexion; a photograph with a matte finish.
noun
  1. a dull or dead surface, often slightly roughened, as on metals, paint, paper, or glass.
  2. a tool for producing such a surface.
  3. Metallurgy. an unfinished metallic product of the smelting of certain sulfide ores, especially those of copper.
  4. Movies. matte shot.
verb (used with object), mat·ted, mat·ting.
  1. to finish with a matte surface.

Origin of matte

1
1640–50; < French mat (masculine), matte (feminine), Old French < Late Latin mattus moist, soft, weak, perhaps < *maditus, derivative of Latin madēre to be wet

mat

2
[mat]
noun
  1. a piece of cardboard or other material placed over or under a drawing, painting, photograph, etc., to serve as a frame or provide a border between the picture and the frame.
verb (used with object), mat·ted, mat·ting.
  1. to provide (a picture) with a mat.

Origin of mat

2
1835–40; apparently mat1, influenced by matte1

mat

3
[mat]
adjective, noun, verb, mat·ted, mat·ting.
  1. matte1.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for matting

dishevel, doily, doormat, entangle, twine, entwine, twist, snarl, braid, tangle, weave, felt, pad, interweave

Examples from the Web for matting

Historical Examples of matting

  • One only heard his body rebounding onto the matting, where the shock had sent him.

    L'Assommoir

    Emile Zola

  • He could see, too, that the matting had been cast aside, revealing the trap-door.

    The White Lie

    William Le Queux

  • It must have been pretty late before I stretched out on my matting.

  • The floor may be covered with matting, but you will find no carpets or rugs.

  • The sails were made of matting, with laths placed across them.

    The Three Midshipmen

    W.H.G. Kingston

British Dictionary definitions for matting

matting

1
noun
  1. a coarsely woven fabric, usually made of a natural fibre such as straw or hemp and used as a floor covering, packing material, etc
  2. the act or process of making mats
  3. material for mats

matting

2
noun
  1. another word for mat 2 (def. 1)
  2. the process of producing a mat finish

matt

matte

adjective, noun, verb
  1. variant spellings of mat 2 (def. 2), mat 1 (def. 3), mat 2 (def. 5)

matte

1
noun
  1. an impure fused material consisting of metal sulphides produced during the smelting of a sulphide ore

Word Origin for matte

C19: from French

matte

2
noun
  1. films television a mask used to blank out part of an image so that another image can be superimposed

mat

1
noun
  1. a thick flat piece of fabric used as a floor covering, a place to wipe one's shoes, etc
  2. a smaller pad of material used to protect a surface from the heat, scratches, etc, of an object placed upon it
  3. a large piece of thick padded material put on the floor as a surface for wrestling, judo, or gymnastic sports
  4. NZ a Māori cloak
  5. go back to the mat NZ to abandon urban civilization
  6. any surface or mass that is densely interwoven or tangleda mat of grass and weeds
  7. the solid part of a lace design
    1. a heavy net of cable or rope laid over a blasting site to prevent the scatter of debris
    2. a heavy mesh of reinforcement in a concrete slab
    3. (esp US) a steel or concrete raft serving as a footing to support a post
  9. civil engineering short for mattress (def. 3)
verb mats, matting or matted
  1. to tangle or weave or become tangled or woven into a dense mass
  2. (tr) to cover with a mat or mats
Derived Formsmatless, adjective

Word Origin for mat

Old English matte; related to Old High German matta

mat

2
noun
  1. a border of cardboard, cloth, etc, placed around a picture to act as a frame or as a contrast between picture and frame
  2. a surface, as on metal or paint
adjective
  1. having a dull, lustreless, or roughened surface
verb mats, matting or matted (tr)
  1. to furnish (a picture) with a mat
  2. to give (a surface) a mat finish
Also (for senses 2, 4): matt

Word Origin for mat

C17: from French, literally: dead; see checkmate

mat

3
noun
  1. printing informal short for matrix (def. 5)
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 matting
n.1

"process of making mats," 1720, from mat (n.1). Meaning "coarse fabric for mats" is from 1748.

n.2

"ornamental border of a picture," 1864 from verbal derivative of mat (n.2).

mat

n.2

"sheet of backing material," 1845, from French mat "dull surface or finish" (15c.), noun use of Old French mat (adj.); see mat (adj.).

mat

v.

early 15c., "to make mats," from mat (n.1). From 1540s as "to provide with mats, to cover with mats;" meaning "to become tangled" is from 1570s. Related: Matted; matting.

matte

n.

"backing for a picture," 1845, from French; see mat (n.2).

matte

n.

variant of mat (n.2).

mat

n.1

loosely joined natural materials used as bedding, etc., Old English matte, from Late Latin matta "mat made of rushes" (4c.), probably from Punic or Phoenician matta (cf. Hebrew mittah "bed, couch"). Meaning "tangled mass" is from 1835. That of "piece of padded flooring used in gymnastics or wrestling" is attested from 1892; hence figurative phrase go to the mat "do battle" (1910). The Latin word also is the source of German Matte, matze; Dutch mat, Italian matta. French natte "mat, matting" is from Late Latin secondary form natta (cf. napkin).

mat

adj.

1640s, "lusterless, dull" (of a color or surface), from French mat "dull, dead surface," from Old French mat "beaten down, withered, afflicted, dejected; dull," which is perhaps from Latin mattus "maudlin with drink," from madere "to be wet or sodden, be drunk," from PIE root *mad- "to be wet, drip" (see mast (n.2)). Or the French word might represent a transferred use from chess of mater "to checkmate, defeat," from Arabic (see mate (v.2)).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with matting

mat

see go to the mat; welcome mat.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.