mattress
Americannoun
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mattresses
plural
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a large pad for supporting the reclining body, used as or on a bed, consisting of a quilted or similarly fastened case, usually of heavy cloth, that contains hair, straw, cotton, foam rubber, etc., or a framework of metal springs.
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a mat woven of brush, poles, or similar material, used to prevent erosion of the surface of dikes, jetties, embankments, dams, etc.
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a layer of concrete placed on bare ground, as to provide a footing; mat.
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a layer of any material used to cushion, protect, reinforce, or the like.
noun
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a large flat pad with a strong cover, filled with straw, foam rubber, etc, and often incorporating coiled springs, used as a bed or as part of a bed
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Also called: Dutch mattress. a woven mat of brushwood, poles, etc, used to protect an embankment, dyke, etc, from scour
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Sometimes shortened to: mat. a concrete or steel raft or slab used as a foundation or footing
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a network of reinforcing rods or expanded metal sheeting, used in reinforced concrete
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civil engineering another name for blinding
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of mattress
1250–1300; Middle English materas < Old French < Italian materasso < Arabic maṭraḥ mat, cushion
Explanation
Your mattress is the padded part of your bed that rests on top of the frame or box springs and is covered in a sheet. Some people prefer a soft, squishy mattress, while others like their mattresses firm. Some mattresses have a system of springs inside to provide just the right amount of firmness and bounce when you lie on them. Others are made of a dense kind of foam that supports a sleeper's body comfortably. The earliest mattresses were filled with straw or horse hair, and in many societies people don't sleep on mattresses at all, instead using mats or futons. The Arabic root of mattress is al-matrah, "thing thrown down."
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.
See Examples For:
Unable to afford a bed frame, he says he slept on a mattress on the floor of his council flat and felt a deep sense of abandonment and isolation.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
Cooling mattress toppers and bedding that use water or phase change materials may also help.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
The mattress maker filed for bankruptcy last month, reaching a deal to be acquired by Sleep Country Canada for nearly $702 million, around $530 million of which is in cash.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
The mattress was as stiff as cardboard and he was worried about his mom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 10, 2026
“It will take a cot mattress, though. Oh yes. Easily!”
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
This year the warehouse is piled high with brand new mattresses ready for families in need.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026
Nepal's Red Cross has begun providing emergency relief, including food, water, hygiene kits, mattresses and blankets.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
Many slept on mattresses or makeshift beds outside.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
He’d split from Tennessee after just one season to take the USC job, leaving Volunteers fans to burn mattresses in protest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
I knew others must have felt the same, for charpoys and mattresses began to appear on the sidewalks.
From "Homeless Bird" by Gloria Whelan
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.
