materiality

noun

ma·​te·​ri·​al·​i·​ty mə-ˌtir-ē-ˈa-lə-tē 

plural materialities

1

: the quality or state of being material

2

: something that is material

Synonyms

• actuality
• case
• fact
• reality

Examples of materiality in a Sentence

preferred a single materiality to a slew of hypotheticals

the materiality of that fact is not in dispute

Recent Examples on the Web

The Republican National Committee told the justices to let the lower ruling stand, which found the dating requirement does not violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because its materiality provision applies only to registration forms, not actual ballots. —Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 21 Jan. 2025

While her work conversed with modernist pictorial strategies—like color field painting and geometric abstraction—Amaral also looked at pre-Columbian knowledge and artifacts, including quipus and stelae, to develop her own language of abstraction, unique for its emphasis on materiality. —Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 25 Oct. 2024

The label’s knitwear is constantly selling out thanks to effortless Swedish sensibilities, emphasis on materiality and shape. —Cortne Bonilla, Vogue, 6 Dec. 2024

As a whole, the residences are described as a fusion of Mexican and Mediterranean modernism that lets the materiality do a lot of the speaking. —Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 7 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1570, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for materiality

• bisexuality
• collegiality
• conditionality
• congeniality
• conventionality
• conviviality
• dimensionality
• directionality
• emotionality
• essentiality
• eventuality
• grammaticality