DICT.TW Dictionary Taiwan

 ma·te·ri·al /məˈtɪriəl/
 材料,物資,素材,布料,資料(a.)物質的,肉體的,具體的

 material
 材料;教材;物質;資料

 material
 材料 實質

 Ma·te·ri·al a.
 1. Consisting of matter; not spiritual; corporeal; physical; as, material substance or bodies.
    The material elements of the universe.   --Whewell.
 2. Hence: Pertaining to, or affecting, the physical nature of man, as distinguished from the mental or moral nature; relating to the bodily wants, interests, and comforts; as, material well-being; material comforts.
 3. Of solid or weighty character; not insubstantial; of consequence; not be dispensed with; important; significant.
    Discourse, which was always material, never trifling.   --Evelyn.
    I shall, in the account of simple ideas, set down only such as are most material to our present purpose.   --Locke.
 4. Logic. Pertaining to the matter, as opposed to the form, of a thing. See Matter.
 Material cause. See under Cause.
 Material evidence Law, evidence which conduces to the proof or disproof of a relevant hypothesis. --Wharton.
 Syn: -- Corporeal; bodily; important; weighty; momentous; essential.

 Ma·te·ri·al, n. The substance or matter of which anything is made or may be made.
 Raw material, any crude, unfinished, or elementary materials that are adapted to use only by processes of skilled labor.  Cotton, wool, ore, logs, etc., are raw material.

 Ma·te·ri·al, v. t. To form from matter; to materialize. [Obs.]
 ◄ ►

 material
      adj 1: concerned with worldly rather than spiritual interests;
             "material possessions"; "material wealth"; "material
             comforts"
      2: derived from or composed of matter; "the material universe"
         [ant: immaterial]
      3: directly relevant to a matter especially a law case; "his
         support made a material difference"; "evidence material to
         the issue at hand"; "facts likely to influence the
         judgment are called material facts"; "a material witness"
         [ant: immaterial]
      4: concerned with or affecting physical as distinct from
         intellectual or psychological well-being; "material
         needs"; "the moral and material welfare of all good
         citizens"- T.Roosevelt
      5: having material or physical form or substance; "that which
         is created is of necessity corporeal and visible and
         tangible" - Benjamin Jowett [syn: corporeal] [ant: incorporeal]
      6: having substance or capable of being treated as fact; not
         imaginary; "the substantial world"; "a mere dream, neither
         substantial nor practical"; "most ponderous and
         substantial things"- Shakespeare [syn: substantial, real]
         [ant: insubstantial]
      n 1: the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a
           physical object; "coal is a hard black material"; "wheat
           is the stuff they use to make bread" [syn: stuff]
      2: information (data or ideas or observations) that can be used
         or reworked into a finished form; "the archives provided
         rich material for a definitive biography"
      3: things needed for doing or making something; "writing
         materials"; "useful teaching materials"
      4: artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or
         crocheting natural or synthetic fibers; "the fabric in the
         curtains was light and semitraqnsparent"; "woven cloth
         originated in Mesopotamia around 5000 BC"; "she measured
         off enough material for a dress" [syn: fabric, cloth,
         textile]
      5: a person judged suitable for admission or employment; "he
         was university material"; "she was vice-presidential
         material"