materialistic

adjective

ma·​te·​ri·​al·​is·​tic mə-ˌtir-ē-ə-ˈli-stik 

1

: overly concerned or preoccupied with material possessions rather than with intellectual or spiritual things

We had always watched The Beverly Hillbillies, and the Andy Griffith Show, where the country folks had to set things straight for the more materialistic city folk.

—Artie Ann Bates

Paying high prices for furniture and art is surely a reflection of an increasingly materialistic age.

—Carol Vogel

2

: of, relating to, or deriving from the theory or doctrine of materialism (see materialism sense 1)

With the so-called Enlightenment, however, a linear, reductionistic, and materialistic view of the universe arose.

—David Fideler

materialistically

mə-ˌtir-ē-ə-ˈli-sti-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

The sin of disobedience to the heavenly vision cannot be atoned for with dollars, and the spiritual loss is highly visible in a self-centered, materialistically minded people.

—Robertson McQuilkin

Examples of materialistic in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Even Lochlan and Piper, who think of themselves as more enlightened than their loutish brother and materialistic parents, have a lot of Victoria in them. —Noel Murray, New York Times, 24 Feb. 2025

Those impossible beauty standards, the constant self-doubt, unhealthy coping mechanisms, and materialistic desires are some of the other examples of what people say goodbye to in their thirties. —Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 12 Jan. 2025

In his view, the fact that routine materialistic calculations make such an outcome unlikely is unimportant, because divine providence will bring it about. —Akbar Ganji, Foreign Affairs, 12 Aug. 2013

Individuals high on this dimension can admit to their mistakes, refrain from overly materialistic pursuits and an envy of others’ possessions. —Mark Travers, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1832, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for materialistic

• deuteronomistic
• imperialistic
• nondeterministic
• nonrelativistic
• oligopolistic
• particularistic
• sociolinguistic
• uncharacteristic
• universalistic
• agonistic
• altruistic
• animistic