materialism

materialism — noun

1. the attitude that owning things and having money should be the main goals in a p

1.nounB2
Definition

the attitude that owning things and having money should be the main goals in a person's life, often pushing aside relationships, ethics, or spiritual concerns

Example

Yumi's materialism was obvious from how she only valued friends who wore expensive brands.

materialism shown through behaviour toward others

The documentary warned that the rise of materialism had damaged community life in many towns.

collocation: rise of materialism

Common collocations
  • rampant materialism
  • crass materialism
  • growing materialism
  • Western materialism
  • materialism and greed
Synonyms
  • greed

    focuses on wanting more than one needs; more personal, less about a whole worldview

  • consumerism

    describes the behaviour and culture of buying goods, not the belief that things are life's main goal

  • acquisitiveness

    formal term for the strong desire to obtain money and things

Antonyms
  • idealism

    values principles, ideas, and moral goals above material gain

  • spirituality

    focuses on religious or inner experience rather than physical possessions

Usage Note

Frequently carries a negative judgement — it describes a value system the speaker disapproves of. The noun is uncountable; do not say 'a materialism' or 'materialisms' for this sense.

Common Mistakes

Consumerism and materialism mean the same thing.
Consumerism and materialism are related but different
consumerism is the system of buying goods, while materialism is the belief that owning things matters most.' — consumerism describes economic activity; materialism describes a personal or cultural value.

2. the philosophical view that the entire universe consists of physical matter and

2.nounC1
Definition

the philosophical view that the entire universe consists of physical matter and that mental experiences, thoughts, and spiritual beings arise from material processes rather than existing independently

Example

In philosophy class, Baraka argued that materialism could not fully account for human consciousness.

materialism contrasted with consciousness

The professor contrasted materialism with idealism in her lecture on 19th-century European thought.

contrast pair: materialism vs. idealism

Common collocations
  • dialectical materialism
  • historical materialism
  • scientific materialism
  • materialism vs. idealism
Synonyms
  • physicalism

    a more recent, narrower term used mainly in philosophy of mind

  • naturalism

    a broader position that rejects supernatural explanations; not identical to materialism

Antonyms
  • idealism

    the view that reality is fundamentally mental, spiritual, or idea-based

  • dualism

    the view that mind and matter are two separate kinds of substance

Usage Note

A technical term in philosophy, distinct from the everyday sense described above. Commonly contrasted with idealism and dualism. In academic writing it is sometimes replaced by the narrower term physicalism.

Common Mistakes

Karl Marx's materialism is about greed.
Karl Marx's materialism is a philosophical and economic theory about how material conditions shape society
not the same as the everyday meaning of valuing possessions.' — Marx's historical materialism belongs to this philosophical sense, not sense 1.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All three words overlap with materialism but differ in scope and register. Greed is narrower and more personal — it describes a strong desire for more than one needs, especially for money or food, rather than a whole worldview. Consumerism refers to the social and economic system that encourages buying goods in large quantities; a person can live in a consumerist society without being personally materialistic. Acquisitiveness is a formal term for the urge to collect and own things, often used in psychology or sociology. Where materialism names the belief that possessions are life's ultimate goal, greed emphasises selfish wanting, consumerism describes the surrounding culture, and acquisitiveness focuses on the habit of accumulating. For example: 'Her materialism led her to judge people by their wallets, not their character'; 'His greed made him cheat his own family'; 'The city's consumerism is visible in its endless shopping malls.'

greedconsumerismacquisitiveness

Common collocations

Nouns

  • age of materialism
  • culture of materialism
  • spread of materialism
  • rejection of materialism

Adverbs

  • excessively
  • crudely
  • rampantly

Phrases

  • materialism and greed
  • materialism and consumerism
  • the rise of materialism

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word entered English in the 1700s from French 'matérialisme', which was formed from Latin 'materialis' (relating to matter or physical stuff). The Latin root 'materia' originally meant 'wood, timber' — the basic building material — and later broadened to mean 'matter, substance' in general. The philosophical sense (only matter is real) appeared first in English; the everyday sense (valuing possessions above all) developed in the 1800s as industrial society and consumer culture grew.