Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - materialism

 noun  Date: 1733  1.  a. a theory that physical matter is the only or fundamental reality and that all being and processes and phenomena can be explained as manifestations or results of matter  b. a doctrine that the only or the highest values or objectives lie in material well-being and in the furtherance of material progress  c. a doctrine that economic or social change is materially caused — compare historical ~  2. a preoccupation with or stress upon material rather than intellectual or spiritual things  • materialist noun or adjective  • materialistic adjective  • materialistically adverb