Mass Meaning
/mæs/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Definition
nounMatter, material.
nounMatter, material., A quantity of matter cohering so as to make one body, or an aggregation of particles or things which collectively make one body or quantity, usually of considerable size.
Sentence Examples
Word Origin & History
In late Middle English (circa 1400) as masse in the sense of "lump, quantity of matter", from Anglo-Norman masse, in Old French attested from the 11th century, via late Latin massa (“lump, dough”), from Ancient Greek μᾶζα (mâza, “barley-cake, lump (of dough)”). The Greek noun may be derived from the verb μάσσω (mássō, “to knead”), ultimately from a Proto-Indo-European *maǵ- (“to oil, knead”), although this is uncertain. Doublet of masa. The sense of "a large number or quantity" arises circa 1580. The scientific sense is from 1687 (as Latin massa) in the works of Isaac Newton, with the first English use (as mass) occurring in 1704.