From late Middle English mature, from Middle French mature, from Latin mātūrus. Doublet of maduro. Partially displaced ripe, from Old English rīpe (“ripe, mature”).
Meanings
Fully developed; grown up in terms of physical appearance, behaviour or thinking; ripe.
The excellent mature eggplants grown in the garden plot are quickly being picked up by family and friends.
She is quite mature for her age.
Brought to a state of complete readiness.
a mature plan
Profound; careful.
On mature reflection, I feel it would be wiser not to sell.
The headmaster decided to expel the boy after a mature consideration.
(obsolete) Come to, or in a state of, completed suppuration.
Suitable for adults only, due to sexual themes, violence, etc.
mature content
Forms
Spelling
Features
Labels
Source
most mature
Degree=Sup
lexicographic
more mature
Degree=Cmp
lexicographic
Antonyms
childish (antonym(s) of “grown up”) · superficial (antonym(s) of “profound”) · immature (antonym(s) of “grown up”)
grown up · adult (suitable for adults only) · adultish (grown up in terms of behaviour or thinking) · grown · adult (grown up in terms of physical appearance) · mature
Translations (96)
hu megfontolt (profound; careful) · tr ergin (fully developed) · es maduro (fully developed) · ota اولغون (fully developed) · fr mûr (fully developed) · ru зре́лый (fully developed) · de (nur) für Erwachsene (suitable for adults only) · tr kamil (fully developed) · hi विकसित (fully developed) · gl maduro (profound; careful) · ar رَاشِد (fully developed) · ca raonat (profound; careful) · ang rīpe (fully developed) · el ώριμος (fully developed) · de reif (fully developed) · kix sām (fully developed) · mi pakeke (fully developed) · ccc chelti (fully developed) · fr mûr (profound; careful) · gd inbheach (fully developed) · sq arritur (brought to a state of complete readiness) · no moden (fully developed) · es curado (fully developed) · pl dojrzały (fully developed) · cmn 成長 /成长 (fully developed) · tr reşit (fully developed) · ga foirfe (fully developed) · de ausgereift (brought to a state of complete readiness) · eu heldu (fully developed) · acw كبير (fully developed) · tr olgun (fully developed) · fi syvällinen (profound; careful) · hu nagykorúaknak szánt/szóló (suitable for adults only) · hy հասուն (fully developed) · it maturo (fully developed) · acw عاقل (fully developed) · tr yetişkin (fully developed) · got 𐍆𐌿𐌻𐌻𐌰𐍅𐌴𐌹𐍃 (fully developed) · de gereift (fully developed) · ja 成熟した (fully developed) · ca madur (fully developed) · nl volwassen (fully developed) · ca madur (profound; careful) · cs dospělý (fully developed) · hu kiérlelt (profound; careful) · ru развито́й (fully developed) · eo matura (fully developed) · hi परिपक्व (fully developed) · ja 成熟 (fully developed) · enm mature (fully developed) · gd abaich (fully developed) · cs zralý (fully developed) · ml പക്വം (profound; careful) · ru проду́манный (profound; careful) · ja 十分成長した (fully developed) · nl volgroeid (fully developed) · ro matur (fully developed) · es maduro (profound; careful) · hu átgondolt (profound; careful) · hu felnőtt- (suitable for adults only) · mi pāhake (fully developed) · el ώριμος (profound; careful) · uk зрі́лий (profound; careful) · de reiflich (profound; careful) · fi huolellinen (profound; careful) · mk зрел (fully developed) · ml പക്വത (fully developed) · nl rijp (fully developed) · fr mature (fully developed) · la mātūrus (fully developed) · ru зре́лый (profound; careful) · sv mogen (fully developed) · sv mogen (profound; careful) · sk dospelý (fully developed) · fr mûre (profound; careful) · cmn 成熟 (fully developed) · no voksen (fully developed) · gl maduro (fully developed) · hu alapos (profound; careful) · pt maduro (fully developed) · ar نَاضِج (fully developed) · ru разу́мный (profound; careful) · sk zrelý (fully developed) · sq matur (profound; careful) · uk зрі́лий (fully developed) · ja 円熟した (fully developed) · sq arritur (fully developed) · txb śrāy (fully developed) · tr erişkin (fully developed) · ar مُعَتَّق (fully developed) · ka მომწიფებული (fully developed) · fi kypsä (fully developed) · gv appee (fully developed) · cy aeddfed (fully developed) · hu érett (fully developed) · ru взро́слый (fully developed)
From Middle English maturen, from Middle French maturer (“to mature”), from Latin mātūrō.
Meanings
(intransitive) To proceed toward maturity: full development or completion (either of concrete or of abstract things, e.g. plans, judgments, qualities).
[…] his originality, in the mean time, was maturing to perfection. 1797, Mr. Harrison, “A Biographical Sketch of Hogarth”, in The Comick Magazine, volume 1, London: Harrison and Co., page 3:
(intransitive, of food, qualifier:especially fruit) To attain maturity, to become mature or ripe.
[…] Trees […] have alwayes Fruit upon them, ripe, or preparing to mature; 1670, John Evelyn, chapter 35, in Sylva, or, A Discourse of Forest-trees, London, page 246:
(transitive) To bring (something) to maturity, full development, or completion.
[…] But these thoughts
Full Counsel must mature: 1667, John Milton, Paradise Lost, book 1, lines 659–660:
[…] much it now
Imports they should be still deceiv’d, till time
Matures our enterprize; 1768, John Hoole, Cyrus: A Tragedy, London: T. Davies, act I, page 12:
[…] I did not interrupt her, I was so busy maturing a plan I had had in my mind for some days […] 1853, Elizabeth Gaskell, Cranford, New York: Harper, Chapter 13, p. 262,:
[…] the long clean groove of her upper lip was ready to go into motion, as if she were going to break her silence with something momentous and long-matured; explain love to me, perhaps. 1953 September 18, Saul Bellow, chapter VIII, in The Adventures of Augie March […], New York, N.Y.: The Viking Press, →OCLC, page 143:
(transitive) To make (something, e.g. fruit) ripe or mature.
There are certain vegetables like the tomato which require a long period to mature the fruit, and these must be started several weeks before the frosts have passed. 2009, Hugh Findlay, Practical Gardening, Vegetables and Fruits:
[…] a ship well freighted with the stores
The sun matures on India’s spicy shores, 1782, William Cowper, “Charity”, in Poems, London: J. Johnson, page 202:
(intransitive, of a person) To proceed toward or become mature or full-grown, either physically or psychologically; to gain experience or wisdom with age.
(transitive) To make (someone) mature.
[…] what I most wanted was time to grow up. The war had not matured me; 1970, Robertson Davies, chapter 2, in Fifth Business, part 6, Toronto: Macmillan, page 103:
Having parents who are "different" from other parents does not make my children's upbringing easy, but having four parents (or two sets of parents) hopefully will mature my children into adults respecting of diversity of personalities and pluralities of races, nationalities, and cultures. 1986, A. Billy S. Jones, “A Father's Need; A Parent's Desire”, in Joseph Beam, editor, In The Life: A Black Gay Anthology, page 150:
Then Tom shall have his kite, and Fan new dollies,
Till time matures them for important follies. 1776, Hannah Cowley, The Runaway, London: Prologue:
(intransitive) To reach the date when payment is due.
When the bond matures, the full face value is payable to its bearer.
sv mogna (to become mature; to ripen) · nl vervallen (to reach the date when payment is due) · hu érik (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · eo maturiĝi (to become mature; to ripen) · la mātūrescō (to become mature; to ripen) · nl volwassen worden (to become mature; to ripen) · hu esedékes lesz (to reach the date when payment is due) · hu lejár (to reach the date when payment is due) · tr olgunlaşmak (to become mature; to ripen) · fi kypsyä (to become mature; to ripen) · sv mogna (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · tr kemâle ermek (to become mature; to ripen) · ca vèncer (to reach the date when payment is due) · fi kypsyä (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · ga aibigh (to become mature; to ripen) · fr devenir mature (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · hu megérik (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · hu megérik (to become mature; to ripen) · de reifen (to become mature; to ripen) · it maturare (to become mature; to ripen) · ty paʻari (to become mature; to ripen) · fr arriver à échéance (to reach the date when payment is due) · mi pakari (to become mature; to ripen) · acw استوى (to become mature; to ripen) · hy հասունանալ (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · nl volgroeien (to become mature; to ripen) · ar نَاضِج (to become mature; to ripen) · got 𐌲𐌰𐍅𐍂𐌹𐍃𐌵𐌰𐌽 (to become mature; to ripen) · ko 숙성시키다 (to make (something, e.g. fruit) ripe or mature) · io adulteskar (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · fi erääntyä (to reach the date when payment is due) · ru расти (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · acw عقل (to become mature; to ripen) · pt madurar (to become mature; to ripen) · es madurar (to become mature; to ripen) · bg узрявам (to become mature; to ripen) · ru созревать (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · ca madurar (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · nl rijpen (to become mature; to ripen) · hu esedékessé válik (to reach the date when payment is due) · fr s'affiner (to become mature; to ripen) · ru созревать (to become mature; to ripen) · de reifen lassen (to make (something, e.g. fruit) ripe or mature) · de fällig werden (to reach the date when payment is due) · hu megérlel (to make (something, e.g. fruit) ripe or mature) · hu érlel (to make (something, e.g. fruit) ripe or mature) · es madurar (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · ko 숙성되다 (to become mature; to ripen) · hu kiérlel (to bring (something) to maturity, full development, or completion) · mi whakapakari (to make (something, e.g. fruit) ripe or mature) · fr mûrir (to gain experience or wisdom with age) · es vencer (to reach the date when payment is due) · ko 숙성시키다 (to bring (something) to maturity, full development, or completion) · fr mûrir (to become mature; to ripen) · tr erginleşmek (to become mature; to ripen) · fr arriver à maturité (to become mature; to ripen) · ca madurar (to become mature; to ripen) · hy հասունանալ (to become mature; to ripen) · pt amadurecer (to become mature; to ripen) · tr tekamül etmek (to become mature; to ripen)