Noah Webster
Mat
MAT, noun [Latin matta.]
1. A texture of sedge, rushes, flags, husks, straw, or other material, to be laid on a floor for cleaning the boots and shoes of those who enter a house, and for other purposes.
2. A web of rope-yard, used in ships to secure the standing rigging from the friction of the yards, etc.
MAT, verb transitive To cover or lay with mats.
1. To twist together; to interweave like a mat; to entangle.
And o'er his eyebrows hung his matted hair.
2. To press together; to lay flat; as matted grass.