Origin: Latin suffix -ure
Mature has 13 different meanings across 2 categories:
To proceed toward maturity: full development or completion (either of concrete or of abstract things, e.g. plans, judgments, qualities).
"The committee decided to wait until the proposal had fully matured before presenting it to the board."
In plain English: To mature means to grow up and become more responsible over time.
"The cheese needs to mature in a cool, dark place for at least three months."
Usage: As a verb, to mature means to reach full physical development or to allow something like food or cheese to develop its final flavor and texture over time. You should use it when describing the natural process of growing up or the gradual improvement of an object's quality through aging.
Fully developed; grown up in terms of physical appearance, behaviour or thinking; ripe.
"After years of travel and self-reflection, she finally felt mature enough to handle the responsibility of running her own business."
In plain English: Mature means acting with good judgment and responsibility instead of being childish or impulsive.
"The cheese needs to mature for several weeks before it is ready to eat."
Usage: Use mature to describe someone who has reached full emotional and intellectual development or something that has ripened, such as fruit. Avoid using it simply to mean old, since an object can be aged without being fully developed.
The word "mature" entered English in the late Middle Ages via Middle French and originally came from the Latin mātūrus. While it shares a root with the Old English word rīpe, which had already been used to describe ripeness, "mature" gradually took over this meaning.