immaterial

[ im-uh-teer-ee-uhl ]

adjective

1. of no essential consequence; unimportant.
2. not pertinent; irrelevant.
3. not material; incorporeal; spiritual.

immaterial

/ ˌɪməˈtɪərɪəl /

adjective

1. of no real importance; inconsequential
2. not formed of matter; incorporeal; spiritual

Derived Forms

• ˌimmaˈterially, adverb
• ˌimmaˌteriˈality, noun

Other Words From

• imma·teri·al·ly adverb
• imma·teri·al·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of immaterial¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Medieval Latin word immāteriālis. See im- ², material

Example Sentences

Regardless of where you land between — or even on — those two poles is immaterial.

From TechCrunch

Whether Hand gets every save opportunity is immaterial — though he was a perfect 16 for 16 with Cleveland last year.

From Washington Post

We literally lost only a few million dollars, which is fairly immaterial.

From Fortune

We’re — you know, so I think — what I think of that is immaterial.

From Freakonomics

Winning a championship, even under disputed circumstances, has a way of making everything else immaterial.

From Washington Post

It is immaterial if the infidel is a combatant or a civilian.

From The Daily Beast

The lack of evidence for HGH as an effective performance enhancer is just as immaterial as its illegality.

From The Daily Beast

Whether blame is assigned to the failed follower or the failed leader is immaterial.

From The Daily Beast

Their daily experiences are so much more powerful than ink on paper that they make the content of textbooks immaterial.

From The Daily Beast

So as long as a lethal strike passes muster in constitutional terms, the location of the target is immaterial.

From The Daily Beast

It is immaterial to whom the transfer is made if the purpose be to prefer one creditor to another.

From Project Gutenberg

It appears also, as far as absorption goes, to be immaterial whether the ammonia is free or combined.

From Project Gutenberg

It is immaterial whether she acquired her estate before or after the birth of the child.

From Project Gutenberg

Nor is the fact immaterial that he need not, and would not have made the payment had he known the true state of things.

From Project Gutenberg

Like him, he disbelieved in the existence of anything immaterial, for even a human soul is formed out of matter.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• extraneous
• inconsequential
• meaningless
• trivial
• unimportant