matte
adjective
[ mat ]
• US spelling of matt (adjective).
matte
noun
• US spelling of matt (noun).
matte
verb
• US spelling of matt (verb).
matte
noun
• an impure product of the smelting of sulphide ores, especially those of copper or nickel.
Origin:
mid 19th century: from French (in Old French meaning ‘curds’), feminine of mat (adjective) ‘matt’, used as a noun.
matte
noun
• a mask used to obscure part of an image in a film and allow another image to be substituted, combining the two.
Origin:
mid 19th century: from French, perhaps from mat (see matt).
matt
adjective
• (of a colour, paint, or surface) dull and flat; without a shine.
• "prints are available on matt or glossy paper"
matt
noun
• a matt paint or finish.
• "the varnishes are available in gloss, satin, and matt"
• a sheet of cardboard placed on the back of a picture, either as a mount or to form a border.
• "try mounting prints against a deep matt or ground of the same background colour"
matt
verb
• give a matt appearance to (something).
• "its bright fresh surface was soon matted with dust and insects"
Origin:
early 17th century (as a verb): from French mat .
