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Communities of epithelial cells communicate through intercellular interactions, allowing them to coordinate their motility, which plays a key role in homeostasis, morphogenesis and cancer metastasis. Each cell in the epithelium is a constitutive energy-consuming agent, which can generate forces and interact with other cells through cell–cell junctions. Forces applied through external stimuli or endogenous cellular events are balanced by the cells within the epithelium, resulting in the adjustment of internal tissue contractile stresses and tissue reorganization. Materials science and microengineering techniques can be combined to create controllable environments to study epithelial movement and mechanics. By modulating the cell–material interface and by applying principles of active matter, key aspects of epithelial dynamics and mechanosensing mechanisms can be investigated. In this Review, we discuss …