Material/məˈtɪriəl/ Definition 1 of 5Pro Tip 1/3Concrete Usage Use 'material' to talk about tangible items used in construction or production. We need to order more material for the new deck. Pro Tip 2/3Non-Specific Objects When you're not sure what exactly something is made from, 'material' is a useful generic term. What kind of material is this toy made of? Pro Tip 3/3Raw Inputs 'Material' often refers to unprocessed resources in a production process. This factory processes raw materials into finished goods.