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.

matte

²

[ mat ]

noun

, Mining.

1. a mass of timber caved beneath overburden so as to cushion the fall of the overburden and separate it from mineral to be extracted beneath.

matte

¹

/ mæt /

noun

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

matte

²

/ mæt /

noun

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of matte¹

First recorded in 1640–50; from French mat (masculine), matte (feminine), Old French, from Late Latin mattus “moist, soft, weak,” perhaps from unattested maditus, derivative of Latin madēre “to be wet”

Origin of matte²

< German; akin to mat ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of matte¹

C19: from French

Example Sentences

Where “Cross” might be said to have a matte finish, “The Day of the Jackal,” created by the Northern Irish novelist and screenwriter Ronan Bennett, is high-gloss.

From Los Angeles Times

Over the last two years, I’ve drenched the bathroom in glossy navy, bisected an office with teal and mustard, painted the stairwell a bright, matte powdery pink.

From Los Angeles Times

On June 21, the company posted a Sticker Mule–branded video of an orange matte Cybertruck.

From Slate

The magazines are sometimes oversized and increasingly matte finished, filled with edge-to-edge photographs and literary heaves.

From New York Times

The latest, 148 full-color, matte pages on 7-by-9-inch paper, is a mix of profiles, Q-and-As, photo essays, even poetry, skewing toward women and people of color and the L.G.B.T.Q. communities.

From New York Times

Related Words

• cloudy
• cold
• dark
• dim
• dismal
• flat
• hazy
• lifeless
• muddy
• muted
• obscure
• soft
• somber
• subdued