no matter
English
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Shortened from earlier it makes no matter, it is no matter.
Pronunciation
[edit]Audio (Southern England): (file)
Interjection
[edit]- (dated or US) It doesn't matter, it's unimportant, it doesn't make any difference.
- It seems that Doug's coat has gone missing. Oh, well, no matter: we can always buy a new one, now can't we?
- "Did you fail your exam?" "Yes, but no matter. I'll just study harder next time."
- 1988, Kate Rushin, “The Black Back-Ups”, in Barbara Smith, editor, Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology:
- My Aunt Rachel brought Jane's dresses for me to wear/Perfectly Good Clothes/And I should've been glad to get them/Perfectly Good Clothes/No matter they didn't fit quite right
- 2025 June 21, Jo Ellison, “The Bezos merger we all want a piece of”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 22:
- Sadly, [Anna] Wintour did not control the weather, which was disappointingly inclement. But, no matter, because the event was awash with a “tsunami of love”.
Translations
[edit]it's unimportant
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Preposition
[edit]- Irrespective of, regardless of, in spite of.
- As an experienced geologist, he can identify any rock no matter where he finds it.
- No matter what the excuse, you must not be late.
- We can fix your plumbing no matter the problem.
- I'll pick you up at the airport on Friday no matter when your flight arrives.
- 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 46:
- No matter how early I came down, I would find him on the veranda, smoking cigarettes, or otherwise his man would be there with a message to say that his master would shortly join me if I would kindly wait.
- 1972, Mortimer J. Adler, Charles Van Doren, How to Read a Book, Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, →LCCN, page 17:
- The attainment of the skills of elementary reading occurred some time ago for almost all who read this book. Nevertheless, we continue to experience the problems of this level of reading, no matter how capable we may be as readers.
- 2011 December 15, Marc Higginson, “Shamrock Rovers 0-4 Tottenham”, in BBC Sport[1], archived from the original on 9 January 2025:
- The result in Greece meant Tottenham could not progress, no matter how many goals they scored against Rovers but, after making nine changes to his starting line-up, Harry Redknapp will be pleased with the performance of his fringe players.
Usage notes
[edit]- Almost always followed by a wh-word: who, what, which, how, when, where, how many, etc. Can also be followed by if. (The phrase no matter that has a different meaning.)
- The wh-word introduces a clause, possibly in a form reduced by ellipsis.
- I recruit talent, no matter how experienced (the talent is).
- I fire the lazy, no matter who (they may be related to).
- We will meet the deadline, no matter how soon (it may be).
Translations
[edit]regardless of
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