maria

Everyday

1. Maria: a common girl's name in many countries. tree →
2. (astronomy) maria: the plural of «mare», the large dark flat areas on the Moon, once thought to be seas. tree →
3. Maria is also the name of the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus, used in old exclamations like 'Sancta Maria!' tree →

In the lessons

As a name, it appears in stories and maths word problems («Maria has 5 apples»). In science lessons about the Moon, the maria are the dark patches made of old cooled lava; they make the «face» some people see in the Moon. Phrases: lunar maria.

Examples

• Maria has twelve stickers and gives away five. tree →
• Maria is the tallest girl in our class. tree →
• The dark patches on the Moon are called maria. tree →
• The maria were made by lava long ago. tree →
• Maria and her dad went fishing. tree →
• You can see the lunar maria without a telescope. tree →
• Ask Maria to share the crayons. tree →
• "Sancta Maria!" resounded from the interior. tree →

Note

As a name it takes a capital M. As the astronomy word it is plural; the singular is «mare» (said MAR-ay), not the horse «mare». Trap: the maria are not real seas; there is no water in them.