The Collaborative International Dictionary
Mat \Mat\, n. [AS. matt, meatt, fr. L. matta a mat made of rushes.]
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.
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.
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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An ornamental border made of paper, pasterboard, metal, etc., put under the glass which covers a framed picture; as, the mat of a daguerreotype. Mat grass. (Bot.)
A low, tufted, European grass ( Nardus stricta).
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Same as Matweed.
Mat rush (Bot.), a kind of rush ( Scirpus lacustris) used in England for making mats.