Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “mat” come from?

Mat comes from French matte, from Latin matta, combined with the Latin suffix -alis and -ia, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European méh₂tēr.

mat (English): A flat piece of coarse material used for wiping...

Definitions

  1. A flat piece of coarse material used for wiping...

Ancestry of “mat”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishmatte—
2Old Englishmeattemat
3Latinmattanominative feminine singular of mattus;...
4Latinmattusdrunk, intoxicated
5Latinmaditus—
6Latinmaderepresent active infinitive of madeō; to be wet; be...
7Latinmadeō—
8Proto-Indo-Europeanmeh₂d-to be wet, to become wet; to meet, approach,...

Words derived from “mat”

  • matt
  • doormat
  • matty
  • matboard
  • matlike
  • biomat
  • floormat
  • tablemat
  • matmaking
  • matweed
  • matless
  • playmat
  • matgrass
  • matmaker
  • slipmat
  • crashmat
  • matball
  • mattifier
  • dustmat
  • cocomat
  • mattify
  • mat
Every word from Proto-Indo-European meh₂d- →