matière première

\ma.tjɛʁ pʁə.mjɛʁ\

/\ma.tjɛʁ pʁə.mjɛʁ\/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“matière première” is outside the top-ranked French vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
16
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - La matière en général, en faisant abstraction de la forme et des autres accidents qui peuvent la modifier.

Key facts for matière première
PropertyValue
Headwordmatière première
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ma.tjɛʁ pʁə.mjɛʁ\
Letters16
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “matière première” sits in French frequency

matière première falls outside the top-100,000 ranked French words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for matière première is 16 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ma.tjɛʁ pʁə.mjɛʁ\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

matière première has no tracked misspelling variants, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is matière première, spelled M-A-T-I-È-R-E- -P-R-E-M-I-È-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    La matière en général, en faisant abstraction de la forme et des autres accidents qui peuvent la modifier.
  2. 2
    Ressource naturelle utilisée dans la production de produits semi-finis ou finis, ou comme source d’énergie.
  3. 3
    Toute matière sur laquelle s’exerce l’industrie, pour en augmenter l’utilité et la valeur.
  4. 4
    Toute matière sur laquelle s’exerce l’industrie, pour en augmenter l’utilité et la valeur.
  5. 5
    Ce qui permet d’élaborer une chose.

Synonyms

matière brutematière primitive

Antonyms

matière transformée

This word in other languages

raw material(English)materia prima(Español)Rohmaterial(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "matière première"?
"matière première" is spelled M-A-T-I-È-R-E- -P-R-E-M-I-È-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is \ma.tjɛʁ pʁə.mjɛʁ\.
What does "matière première" mean?
As a noun, "matière première" means: La matière en général, en faisant abstraction de la forme et des autres accidents qui peuvent la modifier.
How do you pronounce "matière première"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "matière première" is \ma.tjɛʁ pʁə.mjɛʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "matière première" come from?
"matière première" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “matière première”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is M-A-T-I-È-R-E- -P-R-E-M-I-È-R-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ma.tjɛʁ pʁə.mjɛʁ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list