matrix

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈmeɪ.tɹɪks/, /ˈmæt.ɹɪks/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English matrice, matris, borrowed from Old French matrice (“womb, uterus”) and directly from Latin mātrīx, mātrīcis,^[2] a pregnant or breeding animal, in Late Latin the womb, also a source or origin,^[3][2][4] from māter (“mother”) (see mother).^[3][2][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The womb: 1373 in Barnhart, as matrice; the late 14th century in Etymonline; the OED's first quotation is from 1526.^[2][3][6]

Semantic evolution

The many figurative and technical senses come from the idea of that which encloses or gives origin to something.^[3] A mould is from before 1425,^[2] a place or medium in which something is bred or developed from 1555,^[6] and a place of origin and growth from 1605.^[6] An embedding mass, especially the rock surrounding a fossil, gem or ore, is from 1641,^[6] and the substance between cells in biology from 1802.^[6] The mathematical sense, a rectangular array of quantities, comes from the idea of a set of places into which quantities can be set,^[3] and the logical sense, an array of possible combinations of truth values, is by 1914.^[3] The verb, in television broadcasting, is from 1951.^[3][2]

Timeline

• 1373 – the womb.^[2]
• before 1425 – a mould.^[2]
• 1555 – a medium of development.^[6]
• 1641 – an embedding mass.^[6]
• 1802 – intercellular substance.^[6]
• 1914 – a logical array.^[3]
• 1951 – the verb.^[3]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A setting, substance or environment in which something originates, develops or is contained.
2. (mathematics) A rectangular array of numbers or other elements.
3. The rock or other material in which a fossil, crystal or gem is embedded.
4. (anatomy) The tissue at the base of a nail or tooth from which it develops.
5. A mould from which type or records are cast or pressed.
6. (archaic) The womb.

Word family

• patrix
• matrix mechanics

Related words

• matriculate
• alma mater
• mother
• matrice
• maternal
• matron

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press