a. [ Compar. Maturer superl. Maturest. ] [ L. maturus; prob. akin to E. matin. ] [ 1913 Webster ]
1. Brought by natural process to completeness of growth and development; fitted by growth and development for any function, action, or state, appropriate to its kind; full-grown; ripe. [ 1913 Webster ]
Now is love mature in ear. Tennison. [ 1913 Webster ]
How shall I meet, or how accost, the sage,
Unskilled in speech, nor yet mature of age? Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]
2. Completely worked out; fully digested or prepared; ready for action; made ready for destined application or use; perfected; as, a mature plan. [ 1913 Webster ]
This lies glowing, . . . and is almost mature for the violent breaking out. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]
3. Of or pertaining to a condition of full development; as, a man of mature years. [ 1913 Webster ]
4. Come to, or in a state of, completed suppuration. [ 1913 Webster ]
Syn. -- Ripe; perfect; completed; prepared; digested; ready. -- Mature, Ripe. Both words describe fullness of growth. Mature brings to view the progressiveness of the process; ripe indicates the result. We speak of a thing as mature when thinking of the successive stayes through which it has passed; as ripe, when our attention is directed merely to its state. A mature judgment; mature consideration; ripe fruit; a ripe scholar. [ 1913 Webster ]