master
[noun]
Synonyms:
- ruler, boss (informal), chief, commander, controller, director, governor, lord, manager
- expert, ace (informal), doyen, genius, maestro, past master, virtuoso, wizard
- teacher, guide, guru, instructor, tutor
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- main, chief, foremost, leading, predominant, prime, principal
[verb]
Synonyms:
- learn, get the hang of (informal), grasp
- overcome, conquer, defeat, tame, triumph over, vanquish

---

Related Words: maestro, savant, genius, mastermind, guru, swami, overlord, overman, overseer, dominate, govern, predominate, rule

---

English Thesaurus: learn, study, train, pick something up, get the hang of something, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. mas‧ter¹ S2 W2 /ˈmɑːstə $ ˈmæstər/ noun [countable]
[Date: 1000-1100; Language: Old French; Origin: maistre and the word it came from, Latin magister 'chief']

1. SKILLED PERSON someone who is very skilled at something
master of
Runyon was a master of the short story.
a master of disguise
Hitchcock was an acknowledged master of suspense.
master at (doing) something
She’s a master at manipulating people.
a work of art by a true master

2. be a past master (at something) British English to be very good at doing something because you have done it a lot:
He’s a past master at getting free drinks out of people.

3. MAN WITH AUTHORITY old-fashioned
a) a man who has control or authority over servants or workers ⇒ mistress:
You’ll have to ask the master’s permission.
b) the male owner of a dog ⇒ mistress

4. be your own master to be in control of your own life or work:
Determined to be his own master, Simmons quit in 1998 and started working freelance.

5. be master of your own fate/destiny literary to be in complete control of what happens to you:
Our country must be master of its own economic destiny.

6. ORIGINAL a document, record etc from which copies are made:
I gave him the master to copy.

7. Master of Arts/Science/Education etc a university degree in an arts subject, a science subject etc that you can get after your first degree ⇒ MA, M.Sc., MEd, MPhil, ⇒ Bachelor of Arts/Science/Education etc at bachelor(2)

8. TEACHER
a) British English old-fashioned a male teacher ⇒ headmaster, headmistress
b) (also Master) a wise person whose ideas and words other people accept and follow:
a Zen master

9. YOUNG BOY (also Master) old-fashioned used when speaking or referring to a young boy:
How’s young Master Toby today?

10. UNIVERSITY OFFICIAL (also Master) the person who is in charge of some university colleges in the UK:
the Master of Trinity College, Cambridge

11. CAPTAIN old-fashioned someone who is in charge of a ship
⇒ grand master, old master, quizmaster

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. master² verb [transitive]

1. to learn a skill or a language so well that you have no difficulty with it:
the skills needed to master a new language
I never quite mastered the art of walking in high heels.

2. to manage to control a strong emotion Synonym : overcome:
He had learned to master his fear of heights.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

III. master³ adjective [only before noun]

1. a master copy of a document, recording etc is the one from which copies are made
master list/copy/recording etc
We’ve lost the master disk.

2. most important or main:
the master control center at NASA

3. master craftsman/chef/plumber etc someone who is very skilled at a particular job, especially a job that involves working with your hands:
a society of master chefs

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

master
noun
I. person in charge
ADJ. political His political masters are all old right-wing politicians.
PREP. ~ of He wants to be master of his own destiny.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

master
II. person with skill
ADJ. acknowledged, great This portrait is the work of an acknowledged master.
MASTER + NOUN builder, craftsman
PREP. ~ of a master of disguise
PHRASES be a past master at/in/of sth (= to be very good at sth) He's a past master at delaying meetings.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

master
III. Master's: university degree
VERB + MASTER do, study for, take He did a Master's at Hull University.
get She got her Master's last year.
MASTER + NOUN Master's degree
PREP. ~ in a Master's in politics

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

master
verb
ADV. completely, entirely, fully, quite | quickly
VERB + MASTER be difficult to a technique that was surprisingly difficult to master
struggle to, try to the challenge of trying to master a new language
fail to
PHRASES master the art of sth He never completely mastered the art of lip-reading.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

master
noun
BAD: I have a master in Hotel Management.
GOOD: I have a master's in Hotel Management.

Usage Note:
See DEGREE 1 (degree)

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

learn to gain knowledge of a subject or skill, especially by being taught or trained:
How long have you been learning Italian?
What age can you learn to drive in America?
study to learn about a subject by reading books, going to classes etc, especially at school or university:
She’s studying music at Berkeley College in California.
train to learn the skills and get the experience that you need in order to do a particular job:
Julie’s training to be a nurse.
pick something up to learn something without much effort, by watching or listening to other people:
It’s easy to pick up a language when you’re living in a country.
The rules of the game are easy – you’ll soon pick them up.
get the hang of something informal to learn how to do or use something that is fairly complicated, especially with practice:
It took me a while to get the hang of all the features on my new camera.
revise British English, review American English to study facts again, especially on your own, in order to learn them before an examination:
Jenny’s upstairs revising for her Maths exam tomorrow.
master to learn something so well that you have no difficulty with it, especially a skill or a language:
She gave me a book called ‘Mastering the Art of French Cooking’.
I learnt Spanish for years but I never really mastered it.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲