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immaterial

adj
/ˌɪ.məˈtɪə.ɹɪ.əl/UK/ˌɪ.məˈtɪ.ɹi.əl/US/ˌɪ.məˈti.ɹi.əl/CA

Etymology

The adjective is derived from Late Middle English immaterial, inmateriall (“incorporeal; spiritual”), from Middle French immateriel (“not material”) (modern French immatériel), and from its etymon Medieval Latin immāteriālis (“not material”), from Latin im- (a variant of in- (prefix meaning ‘not’)) + māteriālis (“made of matter, material”) (from māteria (“matter, substance, material”) (from māter, from Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr, + ia) + -ālis (suffix forming adjectives of relationship)). The English word is analysable as im- + material. The noun is derived from the adjective.

  1. derived from *méh₂tēr✻
  2. derived from im-
  3. derived from immāteriālis — “not material”
  4. derived from immateriel — “not material”
  5. inherited from immaterial

Definitions

  1. Having no matter or substance

    Having no matter or substance; incorporeal.

    • Some believe that because ghosts are immaterial, they can pass through walls.

  2. Of the nature of the soul or spirit

    Of the nature of the soul or spirit; spiritual.

  3. Of no importance

    Of no importance; inconsequential, insignificant, unimportant.

  4. ›+ 4 more definitions

    1. Having or seeming to have very little substance

      Having or seeming to have very little substance; insubstantial, slight.

      • No, vvhy art thou then exaſperate, thou idle, / immaterial ſkeine of ſleiue ſilke; thou greene ſacenet flap for a ſore eye, thou toſſell of a prodigalls purſe— […]

    2. Especially of evidence

      Especially of evidence; chiefly followed by to: not associated in any way that is important or useful to the context being discussed; irrelevant.

      • Objection, your Honour! The defendant’s criminal record is immaterial to this case.
      • He was perpetually at her side, trying, apparently, to preserve the thread of a disconnected talk, the fate of which was, to judge by her face, profoundly immaterial to the young lady.

    3. A being or entity having no matter or substance.

    4. A thing which is abstract or intangible

      A thing which is abstract or intangible; (uncountable) chiefly preceded by the: things which are abstract or intangible considered collectively.

      • Lodge immaterials in thy Head: aſcend unto inviſibles: fill thy Spirit vvith Spirituals, vvith the myſteries of Faith, the magnalities of Religion, and thy Life vvith the Honour of God; […]
      • And we do absolutely know that these men's inborn temperaments have remained unchanged through all the vicissitudes of their material affairs. Let us see how it is with their immaterials.

The neighborhood

Derived

immaterialism, immaterialist, immateriality, immaterialize, immaterialized, immaterially, immaterialness

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at immaterial. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

01immaterial02spiritual03god04supreme05dominant06allele07chromosome08chaperone09imposed10impose

A definitional loop anchored at immaterial. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

10 hops · closes at immaterial

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA