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master

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

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See also: Master, máster, màster, Mäster, and mäster

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From Middle English maister, mayster, meister (noun) and maistren (verb), from Old English mǣster, mæġster, mæġester, mæġister, magister (“master”), from Latin magister (“chief, teacher, leader”), from Old Latin magester, from Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s (as in magnus (“great”), also cognate of English much and mickle) + -ester/-ister (compare minister (“servant”)). Reinforced by Old French maistre, mestre (noun) and maistriier, maister (verb) from the same Latin source. Compare also Saterland Frisian Mäster (“master”), West Frisian master (“master”), Dutch meester (“master”), German Meister (“master”). Doublet of maestro, magister, and meister.

Alternative forms

Noun

master (plural masters)

  1. Someone who has control over something or someone.
  2. The owner of an animal or slave.
  3. (nautical) The captain of a merchant ship; a master mariner.
    Synonyms: skipper, captain
  4. (dated) A male head of household.
  5. Someone who employs others.
  7. An expert at something.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:skilled person
    Mark Twain was a master of fiction.
    • 1843 July, [Thomas Babington Macaulay], “Art. VII—The Life of Joseph Addison. By Lucy Aikin.”, in The Edinburgh Review, number CLVII, page 231:
      But that which chiefly distinguishes Addison from Swift, from Voltaire, from almost all the other great masters of ridicule, is the grace, the nobleness, the moral purity, which we find even in his merriment.
    • 1693, [John Locke], “§189”, in Some Thoughts Concerning Education, London: […] A[wnsham] and J[ohn] Churchill, […], →OCLC:
      No care is taken to improve young men in their own language, that they may thoroughly understand and be masters of it.
    • 1977, George Lucas, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope:
      Darth Vader: I've been waiting for you, Obi-Wan. We meet again, at last. The circle is now complete. When I left you I was but the learner; now I am the master.
      Obi-Wan Kenobi: Only a master of evil, Darth.
    • 2001, “People with Cancer”, in Falun Gong Stories: A Journey to Ultimate Health‎, Golden Lotus Press, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 62:
      A turning point came earlier this year. In January 2000, the local Qigong master who treated me asked me to find Falun Gong material on the Internet for him.
    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:master.
  8. A tradesman who is qualified to teach apprentices.
  9. (dated) A male schoolteacher.
  11. A skilled artist.
  12. (dated) A man or a boy; mister. See Master.
    • 1731 (date written; published 1745), [Jonathan] Swift, Directions to Servants […], London: […] R[obert] Dodsley, […], and M. Cooper, […], →OCLC:
      Where there are little Maſters and Miſſes in a Houſe, they are uſually great Impediments to the Diverſions of the Servants;
  13. A master's degree; a type of postgraduate degree, usually undertaken after a bachelor degree.
    Synonyms: masters, master's, (Quebec) magistrate
    She has a master in psychology.
  14. A person holding such a degree.
    He is a master of marine biology.
  15. The original of a document or of a recording.
    The band couldn't find the master, so they re-recorded their tracks.
  16. (by extension, music) The copyright in a sound recording.
    Many modern recording artists value owning their masters.
  17. (film) The primary wide shot of a scene, into which the closeups will be edited later.
    Synonyms: establishing shot, long shot
  18. (law) A parajudicial officer (such as a referee, an auditor, an examiner, or an assessor) specially appointed to help a court with its proceedings.
    The case was tried by a master, who concluded that the plaintiffs were the equitable owners of the property. […]
  19. (engineering, computing) A device that is controlling other devices or is an authoritative source.
    Synonyms: coordinator, primary
    Antonyms: secondary, slave, worker
    a master wheel
    a master database
  20. (Freemasonry) A person holding an office of authority, especially the presiding officer.
  21. (by extension) A person holding a similar office in other civic societies.
  22. Ellipsis of master key.
    • 2020, Jane M. Wiggins, Facilities Manager's Desk Reference, page 517:
      The use of masters and submasters will enable suites of rooms to be controlled by one key.
  23. (BDSM) A male dominant.
    Coordinate term: mistress
Hyponyms
Derived terms

English terms starting with “master”

Descendants
Translations
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
See also

Adjective

master (not comparable)

  1. Masterful.
    a master performance
  2. Main, principal or predominant.
  3. Highly skilled.
    master batsman
    • 1895, Marshall Mather, Lancashire Idylls, page 39:
      In another minute she lay peaceful and motionless under the anæsthetic — a statue, immobile, yet expressionful, as though carved by some master hand.
  4. Original.
    master copy
Derived terms
Translations

Verb

master (third-person singular simple present masters, present participle mastering, simple past and past participle mastered)

  1. (intransitive) To be a master.
  2. (transitive) To become the master of; to subject to one's will, control, or authority; to conquer; to overpower; to subdue.
    • 1693, [John Locke], “(please specify the section number)”, in Some Thoughts Concerning Education, London: […] A[wnsham] and J[ohn] Churchill, […], →OCLC:
      Obstinacy and willful neglects must be mastered, even though it cost blows.
    • [1898], J[ohn] Meade Falkner, Moonfleet, London; Toronto, Ont.: Jonathan Cape, published 1934, →OCLC:
      Then Elzevir cried out angrily, 'Silence. Are you mad, or has the liquor mastered you? Are you Revenue-men that you dare shout and roister? or contrabandiers with the lugger in the offing, and your life in your hand. You make noise enough to wake folk in Moonfleet from their beds.'
  3. (transitive) To learn to a high degree of proficiency.
    It took her years to master the art of needlecraft.
  4. (transitive, obsolete) To own; to possess.
  5. (transitive, especially of a musical performance) To make a master copy of.
  6. (intransitive, usually with in) To earn a Master's degree.
    He mastered in English at the state college.
Derived terms
Terms derived from the verb master
Translations

Etymology 2

From mast +‎ -er.

Noun

master (plural masters)

  1. (nautical, in combination) A vessel having a specified number of masts.
    a two-master
Derived terms
Translations

Anagrams

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Finnish

Etymology

From English master.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈmɑster/, [ˈmɑ̝s̠te̞r]
  • Rhymes: -ɑster
  • Syllabification(key): mas‧ter
  • Hyphenation(key): mas‧ter

Noun

master

  1. (BDSM) (male) dom

Declension

More information nominative, genitive ...
More information first-person singular possessor, singular ...
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French

French Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia fr

Etymology

Borrowed from English master. Doublet of maestro, borrowed from Italian, magister, borrowed from Latin, and maître, inherited from Latin.

Pronunciation

Noun

master m (plural masters)

  1. master's degree, master's (postgraduate degree)
  2. master (golf tournament)
  3. master, master copy

Further reading

Anagrams

Indonesian

Etymology

From Dutch master. Doublet of maestro, magister, and mester.

Pronunciation

Noun

mastêr (plural master-master or para master)

  1. master (someone who has control over something or someone)
    Synonym: tuan
  2. master (an expert at something)
    Synonym: ahli
  3. master (the original of a document or of a recording)
  4. (education) master (a type of postgraduate degree, usually undertaken after a bachelor degree)
    Synonyms: magister, sarjana utama

Verb

mastêr (active memaster, passive dimaster)

  1. to master (to learn to a high degree)
  2. to master (to make a master copy of)

Affixed terms

  • masteran (“the result of mastering”)
  • masterkan (“to master”)
  • pemaster (“masterer”)
  • pemasteran (“mastering”)

Compounds

  • master internasional (“International Master”)

Further reading

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Norwegian Bokmål

Noun

master m or f

  1. indefinite plural of mast

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology 1

From English master. Doublet of magister.

Noun

master m (definite singular masteren, indefinite plural masterar, definite plural masterane)

  1. a master's degree
  2. a master's thesis
  3. a person that has a master's degree
  4. original document or recording

Etymology 2

Noun

master f (definite singular mastra or mastri, indefinite plural mastrer, definite plural mastrene)

  1. (pre-2012) alternative form of mast

Etymology 3

Noun

master f

  1. indefinite plural of mast

References

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Old Frisian

Alternative forms

Etymology

Borrowed from Vulgar Latin *maester, from Latin magister. Cognates include Old English mæġester and Old Saxon mēstar.

Pronunciation

Noun

māster m

  1. master
  2. leader
  3. commissioner

Inflection

More information singular, plural ...

Derived terms

Descendants

References

  • Bremmer, Rolf H. (2009), An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN, page 28
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Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from English master. Doublet of măiestru, maestru, maistru, magistru, and meșter.

Noun

master m (plural mastere)

  1. master's degree

Declension

More information singular, plural ...
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Swedish

Noun

master

  1. indefinite plural of mast

Anagrams

Turkish

Turkish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia tr

Alternative forms

  • mastır

Etymology

Borrowed from English master, from Old English mæġester, from Latin magister, from Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s. Doublet of maestro.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈmas.tɯɾ/
  • Hyphenation: mas‧ter

Noun

master (definite accusative masterı, plural masterlar)

  1. master's degree
    Synonym: yüksek lisans

Further reading

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West Frisian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

master c (plural masters, diminutive masterke)

  1. master

Derived terms

Further reading

  • “master”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

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