mattress
/ˈmætɹɪs/ noun, verb
Forms mattresses mattressing mattressed
- noun A pad on which a person can recline and sleep, usually having an inner section of coiled springs covered with foam or other cushioning material then enclosed with cloth fabric.
- noun A form of retaining wall used to support foundations or an embankment
- noun A form of lagging, in particular for boilers.
- verb (transitive) To cover with a thick layer, like a mattress; to blanket.
Etymology
From Middle English materas, from Old French matras, from Arabic مَطْرَح (maṭraḥ, “place where something is thrown”), from طَرَحَ (ṭaraḥa, “to throw”). Compare divan, from Persian via Turkish (both of Middle Eastern origin, due to the local custom of lying on padding on floor being foreign to Europeans).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A quilted bed; a bed stuffed with hair, moss, or other suitable material, and quilted or otherwise fastened. [Written also matress.]
- noun A mass of interwoven brush, poles, etc., to protect a bank from being worn away by currents or waves.
Etymology [OF. materas, F. matelas, LL. matratium; cf. Sp. & Pg. almadraque, Pr. almatrac; all from Ar. matsrah a place where anything is thrown, what is thrown under something, fr. tsaraha to throw.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “mattress”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details