mate

Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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See also: Appendix:Variations of "mate" and maté

English[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /meɪt/
  • (UK) IPA(key): /meiʔ/
  • Audio (US)
    		(file)
  • Audio (AU)
    		(file)
  • Rhymes: -eɪt

Etymology 1[edit]

From Middle English mate, a borrowing from Middle Low German mate (“messmate”) (replacing Middle English mette (“table companion, mate, partner”), from Old English ġemetta (“sharer of food, table-guest”)), derived from Proto-Germanic *gamatjô, itself from *ga- (“together”) (related to German and Dutch ge-) + *matjô (from *matiz (“food”)), related to Old English mete (“food”)). From the same Middle Low German source stems German Maat (“naval non-commissioned officer”). Cognates include Saterland Frisian Moat (“friend, buddy, comrade, mate”), Dutch maat (“mate, partner, colleague, friend”). More at Old English ġe-, English co-, English meat.

Noun[edit]

mate (plural mates)

  1. A fellow, comrade, colleague, partner or someone with whom something is shared, e.g. shipmate, classmate.
    Synonyms: fellow, (poetic, archaic) fere
  2. (especially of a non-human animal) A breeding partner.
  3. (colloquial, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, sometimes elsewhere in the Commonwealth) A friend, usually of the same sex.
    Synonyms: friend, buddy; see also Thesaurus:friend
    I'm going to the pub with a few mates.
    He's my best mate.
  4. (colloquial, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, sometimes elsewhere in the Commonwealth) Friendly term of address to a stranger, usually male, of similar age.
    Synonym: buddy
    Excuse me, mate, have you got the time?
  5. (nautical) In naval ranks, a non-commissioned officer or his subordinate (e.g. Boatswain's Mate, Gunner's Mate, Sailmaker's Mate, etc).
  6. (nautical) A ship's officer, subordinate to the master on a commercial ship.
  7. (nautical) A first mate.
  8. A technical assistant in certain trades (e.g. gasfitter's mate, plumber's mate); sometimes an apprentice.
  9. The other member of a matched pair of objects.
    I found one of the socks I wanted to wear, but I couldn't find its mate.
  10. A suitable companion; a match; an equal.
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
nautical: first mate — see first mate
friend — See also translations at friend
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Verb[edit]

mate (third-person singular simple present mates, present participle mating, simple past and past participle mated)

  1. (intransitive) To match, fit together without space between.
    Synonyms: match, couple, pair
    The pieces of the puzzle mate perfectly.
  2. (intransitive) To copulate.
    Synonyms: couple; see also Thesaurus:copulate
  3. (intransitive) To pair in order to raise offspring.
  4. (transitive) To arrange in matched pairs.
  5. (transitive) To introduce (animals) together for the purpose of breeding.
  6. (transitive, of an animal) To copulate with.
  7. (transitive) To marry; to match (a person).
  8. (transitive) To match oneself against; to oppose as equal; to compete with.
  9. (transitive) To fit (objects) together without space between.
  10. (transitive, aerospace) To move (a space shuttle orbiter) onto the back of an aircraft that can carry it.
    Antonym: demate
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
to engage in sexual intercourse — see copulate
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Etymology 2[edit]

From Middle English verb maten, Middle French mater, from Old French noun mat (“checkmate”), from Persian شاه مات‎ (šâh mât).

Noun[edit]

mate (plural mates)

  1. (chess) Clipping of checkmate.
Translations[edit]
checkmate — see checkmate

Verb[edit]

mate (third-person singular simple present mates, present participle mating, simple past and past participle mated)

  1. (chess) Clipping of checkmate.
  2. To confuse; to confound.
Translations[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

See maté.

Noun[edit]

mate (plural mates)

  2. Alternative spelling of maté, an aromatic tea-like drink prepared from the holly yerba maté (Ilex paraguariensis).
  3. The abovementioned plant; the leaves and shoots used for the tea

Anagrams[edit]

Asturian[edit]

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive of matar

Cebuano[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Short for English checkmate, from Middle English chekmat, from Old French eschec mat, from Arabic شَاهُ مَاتَ‎ (šāhu māta), from Persian شاه مات‎ (šâh mât, “the king [is] amazed”).

Pronunciation[edit]

  • Hyphenation: ma‧te

Noun[edit]

mate

  1. (chess) a checkmate

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. (chess) to checkmate; to put the king of an opponent into checkmate

Interjection[edit]

mate

  1. (chess) checkmate

Quotations[edit]

For quotations using this term, see Citations:mate.

Dutch[edit]

Etymology[edit]

A more archaic form of maat (“measure”), in petrified use in various contexts and expressions. From Middle Dutch mate, from Old Dutch *māta, from Proto-Germanic *mētō.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • Audio
    		(file)
  • Hyphenation: ma‧te

Noun[edit]

mate f (plural maten, diminutive maatje n)

  1. A measure, degree: quantity or intensity of something abstract

See also[edit]

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. (archaic) singular past subjunctive of meten

Fijian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Central-Pacific *mate, from Proto-Oceanic *mate, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(m-)atay, from Proto-Austronesian *(m-)aCay.

Adjective[edit]

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Noun[edit]

mate

  1. death

French[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Adjective[edit]

mate

  1. feminine singular of mat

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. inflection of mater:
    1. first/third-person singular present indicative/subjunctive
    2. second-person singular imperative

Anagrams[edit]

Galician[edit]

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive of matar

Gothic[edit]

Romanization[edit]

matē

  1. Romanization of 𐌼𐌰𐍄𐌴

Italian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ˈma.te/
  • Rhymes: -ate
  • Hyphenation: mà‧te

Etymology 1[edit]

From Latin māter, from Proto-Italic *mātēr, from Proto-Indo-European *méh₂tēr.

Noun[edit]

mate m (plural mati)

  1. (obsolete) mother
    Synonym: madre

See also[edit]

Etymology 2[edit]

From Quechua mati (“gourd”).

Alternative forms[edit]

Noun[edit]

mate m (invariable)

  1. (botany) yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis)
  2. maté (beverage)

References[edit]

  • mate1 in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana
  • mate2 in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Anagrams[edit]

Japanese[edit]

Romanization[edit]

mate

  1. Rōmaji transcription of まて

Laboya[edit]

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. to die

Derived terms[edit]

References[edit]

  • Rina, A. Dj.; Kabba, John Lado B. (2011) , “mate”, in Kamus Bahasa Lamboya, Kabupaten Sumba Bakat [Dictionary of Lamboya Language, West Sumba Regency], Waikabubak: Dinas Kebudayaan dan Pariwisata, Kabupaten Sumba Bakat, page 66

Maori[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *mate (compare Hawaiian make, Rapa Nui mate, Tahitian mate), from Proto-Oceanic [Term?] (compare Fijian mate), from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(m-)atay (compare Cebuano matay, Chamorro matai, Ilocano matay, Indonesian mati, Javanese mati, Kapampangan mate, mete, Malagasy maty, Malay mati, Palauan mad, Tagalog matay), from Proto-Austronesian *(m-)aCay.

Adjective[edit]

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Noun[edit]

mate

  1. death
  2. disease
  3. in want of

Derived terms[edit]

Mapudungun[edit]

Noun[edit]

mate (Raguileo spelling)

  1. The drink maté, prepared of yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis).

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  • Wixaleyiñ: Mapucezugun-wigkazugun pici hemvlcijka (Wixaleyiñ: Small Mapudungun-Spanish dictionary), Beretta, Marta; Cañumil, Dario; Cañumil, Tulio, 2008.

Norwegian Bokmål[edit]

Verb[edit]

mate (imperative mat, present tense mater, passive mates, simple past and past participle mata or matet, present participle matende)

  1. to feed

Synonyms[edit]

Related terms[edit]

References[edit]

Pali[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

Alternative scripts

Adjective[edit]

mate

  1. inflection of mata (“dead; thought”):
    1. masculine/neuter locative singular
    2. masculine accusative plural
    3. feminine vocative singular

Noun[edit]

mate

  1. locative singular of mata (“opinion”)

Portuguese[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Borrowed from Spanish mate, from Quechua mati.

Noun[edit]

mate m (uncountable)

  1. (South Brazil) maté (Ilex paraguariensis) (a shrub native to southern South America)
    Synonyms: erva mate, erva
  2. (South Brazil) maté (a beverage prepared from the leaves of this plant)
    Synonym: chimarrão

Etymology 2[edit]

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. first-person singular (eu) present subjunctive of matar
    É importante que eu mate seus inimigos.
    It’s important that I kill your enemies.
  2. third-person singular (ele and ela, also used with você and others) present subjunctive of matar
    É importante que ele mate seus inimigos.
    It’s important that he kills your enemies.
  3. third-person singular (você) affirmative imperative of matar
    Você aí, mate seus inimigos sozinho.
    You there, kill your enemies by yourself.
  4. third-person singular (você) negative imperative of matar
    Você aí, não mate seus inimigos sozinho.
    You there, don’t kill your enemies by yourself.

Rapa Nui[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *mate, from Proto-Oceanic *mate, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(m-)atay, from Proto-Austronesian *(m-)aCay.

Adjective[edit]

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. to die

Romanian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Clipping of matematică.

Noun[edit]

mate f (uncountable)

  1. (colloquial) maths

Shona[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Bantu *màtáì.

Noun[edit]

maté 6

  1. saliva (liquid secreted into the mouth)

Spanish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ˈmate/, [ˈma.t̪e]

Etymology 1[edit]

Borrowed from French mat, mate.

Adjective[edit]

mate (plural mates)

  1. matte (not reflective of light)

Etymology 2[edit]

From jaque mate (“checkmate”).

Noun[edit]

mate m (plural mates)

  1. (chess) mate, checkmate
    Synonym: jaque mate
  2. (colloquial, El Salvador) a hand gesture
Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Borrowed from Quechua mati.

Noun[edit]

mate m (plural mates)

  2. maté (the drink prepared from yerba maté (Ilex paraguariensis))
  3. a hollow gourd or cup in which maté is traditionally served
  4. (colloquial, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay) head (top part of the body)
    Synonym: cabeza
Derived terms[edit]
Descendants[edit]
  • → English: maté, mate
  • → French: maté

Etymology 4[edit]

Possibly from sense 1 in the sense of "dull" or "not reflective of light."

Adjective[edit]

mate (plural mates)

  1. (South America) tan, tanned (skin colour)

Etymology 5[edit]

Clipping of matemática.

Noun[edit]

mate f (plural mates)

  1. (colloquial) math / maths
    Synonym: mates

Etymology 6[edit]

See the etymology of the main entry.

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of matar.
  2. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of matar.
  3. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of matar.
  4. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted?) present subjunctive form of matar.

Further reading[edit]

  • “mate” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.
  • Roberts, Edward A. (2014) A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the Spanish Language with Families of Words based on Indo-European Roots, Xlibris Corporation, →ISBN

Swahili[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Bantu *màtáì.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

mate (ma class, plural only)

  1. saliva (liquid secreted into the mouth)

Tahitian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *mate, from Proto-Oceanic *mate, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(m-)atay, from Proto-Austronesian *(m-)aCay.

Adjective[edit]

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. to die

Tetum[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *mate, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(m-)atay, from Proto-Austronesian *(m-)aCay.

Adjective[edit]

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Noun[edit]

mate

  1. death

Tokelauan[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ˈma.te/
  • Hyphenation: ma‧te

Etymology 1[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *mate. Cognates include Hawaiian make and Samoan mate.

Verb[edit]

mate (plural mamate)

  1. (intransitive) to die
  2. (stative) to be paralysed
  3. (intransitive, of fire) to go out
  4. (intransitive, of players) to go out
  5. (intransitive, of engines) to stop
Usage notes[edit]
  • In the sense "to die", mate is normaly used to refer to plants and animals.
  • When used to refer to a human, mate may be perceived as either disrespectful or humorous.

Etymology 2[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *mate. Cognates include Tongan mate and Samoan mate.

Noun[edit]

mate

  1. guess

Verb[edit]

mate

  1. (transitive) to guess
Derived terms[edit]

Etymology 3[edit]

Noun[edit]

mate

  1. (to a male) sororal nephew

References[edit]

  • R. Simona, editor (1986) Tokelau Dictionary‎[1], Auckland: Office of Tokelau Affairs, page 229

Tongan[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Proto-Polynesian *mate.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

mate

  1. death
  2. the dead

Adjective[edit]

mate

  1. dead
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