Matte

//mæt// adj, noun, verb

adj, noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A decorative border around a picture used to inset and center the contents of a frame.

    "The image is a perfect square of 8 cm (with white matte border the total dimensions are 14 cm tall by 11 cm wide)."

  2. 2
    the property of having little or no contrast; lacking highlights or gloss wordnet
  3. 3
    A background, often painted or created with computers

    "Matte painting is a tool that filmmakers can use to create a scene that is impossible to achieve with conventional cinematographic means."

  4. 4
    a mixture of sulfides that forms when sulfide metal ores are smelted wordnet
  5. 5
    The molten metal sulfide phases typically formed during smelting of copper, nickel, and other base metals.
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  1. 6
    An instrument for producing a dull, lustreless surface.
Verb
  1. 1
    To produce a dull, lustreless surface on (metal). transitive
  2. 2
    change texture so as to become matted and felt-like wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    Dull; not reflective of light. US

    "Flat or matte paint allows a deep color expression on the walls while also hiding flaws that may be inherent on the painted surface."

Adjective
  1. 1
    not reflecting light; not glossy wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
matmattantireflectiveblandblowupblueprint

Example

More examples

"I got a computer with a matte screen, since I find that it doesn't strain my eyes as much."

Etymology

Borrowed from French mat.

Related phrases

closed mattedemi-mattehard matteopen mattesoft matte

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.