mat
    adj 1: not reflecting light; not glossy; "flat wall paint"; "a
           photograph with a matte finish" [syn: flat, mat,
           matt, matte, matted]
    n 1: a thick flat pad used as a floor covering
    2: mounting consisting of a border or background for a picture
       [syn: mat, matting]
    3: sports equipment consisting of a piece of thick padding on
       the floor for gymnastic sports [syn: mat, gym mat]
    4: a mass that is densely tangled or interwoven; "a mat of weeds
       and grass"
    5: a master's degree in teaching [syn: Master of Arts in
       Teaching, MAT]
    6: the property of having little or no contrast; lacking
       highlights or gloss [syn: flatness, lusterlessness,
       lustrelessness, mat, matt, matte]
    7: a small pad of material that is used to protect surface from
       an object placed on it
    v 1: twist together or entwine into a confusing mass; "The child
         entangled the cord" [syn: entangle, tangle, mat,
         snarl] [ant: disentangle, straighten out, unsnarl]
    2: change texture so as to become matted and felt-like; "The
       fabric felted up after several washes" [syn: felt, felt
       up, mat up, matt-up, matte up, matte, mat]

Mat \Mat\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Matted; p. pr. & vb. n.
   Matting.]
   1. To cover or lay with mats. --Evelyn.
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   2. To twist, twine, or felt together; to interweave into, or
      like, a mat; to entangle.
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            And o'er his eyebrows hung his matted hair.
                                                  --Dryden.
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Mat \Mat\ (m[a^]t), n. [Cf. Matte.]
   A name given by coppersmiths to an alloy of copper, tin,
   iron, etc., usually called white metal. [Written also
   matt.]
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Mat \Mat\, a. [OF. See 4th Mate.]
   Cast down; dejected; overthrown; slain. [Obs.]
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         When he saw them so piteous and so maat. --Chaucer.
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Mat \Mat\, v. i.
   To grow thick together; to become interwoven or felted
   together like a mat, as hair when wetted with a sticky
   substance; as, a long-haired cat whose fur is matted.
   [1913 Webster +PJC] Matabele

Mat \Mat\, n. [AS. matt, meatt, fr. L. matta a mat made of
   rushes.]
   1. A thick flat fabric of sedge, rushes, flags, husks, straw,
      hemp, or similar material, placed on the floor and used
      for wiping and cleaning shoes at the door, for covering
      the floor of a hall or room to protect its surface, and
      for other purposes.
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   2. Any similar flat object made of fabric or other material,
      such as rubber or plastic, placed flat on a surface for
      various uses, as for covering plant houses, putting
      beneath dishes or lamps on a table, securing rigging from
      friction, and the like.
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   3. Anything growing thickly, or closely interwoven, so as to
      resemble a mat in form or texture; as, a mat of weeds; a
      mat of hair.
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   4. An ornamental border made of paper, pasterboard, metal,
      etc., put under the glass which covers a framed picture;
      as, the mat of a daguerreotype.
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   Mat grass. (Bot.)
      (a) A low, tufted, European grass (Nardus stricta).
      (b) Same as Matweed.

   Mat rush (Bot.), a kind of rush (Scirpus lacustris) used
      in England for making mats.
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