Material: meaning, example and synonyms
Materialadj. Relevant and significant, especially enough to affect an outcome or decision.
Example
The appeals court ruled that the withheld report was material to the case, since it might well have changed the jury's verdict.
- Part of speech
- adjective
- Synonyms
- relevant, significant, pertinent, consequential
- Antonyms
- immaterial, irrelevant, insignificant, trivial
- Memory tip
- Material evidence matters; immaterial evidence doesn't.
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Check yourself: Material in context
The auditor flagged the omission as ______, since investors who knew of the hidden debt would almost certainly have valued the company differently.
Answer: material. An omission that would change investors' decisions is significant: material. Superfluous and innocuous say the opposite; earnest doesn't fit an omission.
The judge excluded the witness's remarks about the defendant's clothing, ruling that they were not ______ to the question of whether he had signed the contract.
Answer: material. Remarks about clothing weren't relevant to the signing: not material to it. Earnest, exemplary and convoluted don't take 'to the question' or mean relevant.