Meaning

noun a thick flat pad used as a floor covering

noun mounting consisting of a border or background for a picture

noun sports equipment consisting of a piece of thick padding on the floor for gymnastic sports

originInherited from Middle English matte (“mat”), from Old English meatte (“mat”), from Late Latin matta (“mat made of rushes”), from Punic or Phoenician (compare Hebrew מיטה \ מִטָּה (mitá, “bed, couch”)). Cognate with German Matte (“mat”), Danish måtte (“mat”), Faroese and Icelandic motta (“rug, mat”), Norwegian matte (“mat, rug”), Swedish matta (“carpet, rug, mat”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0