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mate

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

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See also: Appendix:Variations of "mate"
Languages (34)
English
Asturian • Cebuano • Czech • Dutch • Fijian • French • Galician • Gothic • Italian • Japanese • Kapampangan • Laboya • Lithuanian • Luba-Kasai • Maori • Mapudungun • Middle English • Norwegian Bokmål • Pali • Polish • Portuguese • Rapa Nui • Romanian • Shona • Spanish • Swahili • Swedish • Tagalog • Tahitian • Tetum • Tokelauan • Tongan • Uneapa
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English

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

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 Low German Maat (“journeyman, companion”), 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. Doublet of maat.

Compare typologically Latin compāniō (whence companion) (< con- + panis + -ō), Russian однока́шник (odnokášnik) (< одно- (odno-) + ка́ша (káša) + -ник (-nik)).

Noun

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
    • 1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 152:
      A "mate" was a "mate" - share and share alike, no matter how bad might be the times, or how long a spell of ill luck had attended them.
  2. (especially of a non-human animal) A breeding partner.
    • 2015 April 16, Richard P. Grant, “Sex and the successful fundraiser”, in The Guardian‎:
      Such overt displays of avowed sexual prowess – or at least, desperate availability – are not limited to the countryside. Even in the city, birds and animals and stockbrokers and nurses find ways of signalling their suitability as a mate.
  3. (colloquial, British, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, 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, British, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, 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.
    • 1667, John Milton, “Book IV”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
      Ye knew me once no mate / For you; there sitting where you durst not soar.
Usage notes
  • In British English and Irish English, "mate" typically carries more masculine connotations than in Australian English and New Zealand English, in which the word is used as a unisex term.
Derived terms
Translations
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Verb

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
    • 1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page 172:
      “In fact, the apes live with us, and have for many ages. We call them the first men—we speak their language quite as much as we do our own; only in the rituals of the temple do we make any attempt to retain our mother tongue. In time it will be forgotten, and we will speak only the language of the apes; in time we will no longer banish those of our people who mate with apes, and so in time we shall descend to the very beasts from which ages ago our progenitors may have sprung.”
  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, obsolete) To match oneself against; to oppose as equal; to compete with.
  9. (transitive) To fit (objects) together without space between.
  10. (intransitive) To come together as companions, comrades, partners, etc.
    • 1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 152:
      Indeed, some cases of devotion that were met with were quite touching; and very often to all appearances the pairs were not always mated from the same class of society.
  11. (transitive, aerospace) To move (a space shuttle orbiter) onto the back of an aircraft that can carry it.
    Antonym: demate
Derived terms
Translations
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Etymology 2

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

Noun

mate (plural mates)

  1. (chess) Clipping of checkmate.
Derived terms
Translations

Verb

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

  1. (chess) Clipping of checkmate.
Translations

Etymology 3

From Middle English maten (“to overpower”), from Old French mater (“to kill”), from Vulgar Latin *mattō, of unclear origin.

Verb

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

  1. (obsolete) To confuse; to confound.

Etymology 4

See maté.

Noun

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

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Asturian

Verb

mate

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

Cebuano

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish mate.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈmate/ [ˈma.t̪e]
  • Hyphenation: ma‧te

Noun

mate (Badlit spelling ᜋᜆᜒ)

  1. (chess) a checkmate

Verb

mate (Badlit spelling ᜋᜆᜒ)

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

Interjection

mate (Badlit spelling ᜋᜆᜒ)

  1. (chess) checkmate

Quotations

For quotations using this term, see Citations:mate.

Czech

Pronunciation

Verb

mate

  1. third-person singular present of mást

Dutch

Pronunciation 1

  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: ma‧te

Noun

mate f (plural maten, diminutive maatje n)

  1. archaic form of maat (“measure”)

Noun

mate

  1. (archaic) dative singular of maat degree, extent
    in welke mate ― to what degree
    in zekere mate ― to a certain degree
    in hoge mate ― to a great degree
    met mate ― in moderation
    In welke mate voel je je verantwoordelijk voor het ongeluk? ― To what degree do you feel responsible for the accident?
Usage notes
  • The usage of mate in modern Dutch likely mostly reflects a survival of its dative case form. The old nominative mate is more rare, although in a number of collocations such as de mate waarin ("the degree to which") it is still encountered, and with the simplification of the case system the old distinction between the nominative and old dative has become muddled.

Verb

mate

  1. (dated or formal) singular past subjunctive of meten

Pronunciation 2

Noun

mate m (uncountable)

  1. alternative spelling of maté
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Fijian

Etymology

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

Adjective

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Noun

mate

  1. death

French

Pronunciation

Adjective

mate

  1. feminine singular of mat

Verb

mate

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

Anagrams

Galician

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈmate/ [ˈma.t̪ɪ]
  • Rhymes: -ate
  • Hyphenation: ma‧te

Etymology 1

Borrowed from French mat, mate.

Adjective

mate m or f (plural mates)

  1. matte (not reflective of light)

Etymology 2

From xaque mate (“checkmate”), from Arabic شَاه مَاتَ (šāh māta), from Persian شاه مات (šâh mât, “the king [is] dead”).

Noun

mate m (plural mates)

  1. (chess) mate, checkmate
    Synonym: xaque mate
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Quechua mati.

Noun

mate m (plural mates)

  2. maté (the drink prepared from yerba maté (Ilex paraguariensis)
  3. Ilex paraguariensis, a plant used to make maté
    Synonym: herba mate
Derived terms
  • herba mate

Etymology 4

From matar (“kill”).

Noun

mate m (plural mates)

  1. (basketball) dunk (the act of dunking, particularly in basketball)

Verb

mate

  1. inflection of matar:
    1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
    2. third-person singular imperative
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Gothic

Romanization

matē

  1. romanization of 𐌼𐌰𐍄𐌴

Italian

Pronunciation

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

Etymology 1

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

Noun

mate m (plural mati)

  1. (obsolete) mother
    Synonym: madre

See also

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Spanish mate, from Quechua mati (“gourd”).

Alternative forms

Noun

mate m (invariable)

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

Further reading

  • 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

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Japanese

Romanization

mate

  1. Rōmaji transcription of まて

Kapampangan

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(m-)atay (“die; dead; sick; tired (of)”), from Proto-Austronesian *ma-aCay (“die; dead; eclipse of sun or moon”), from Proto-Austronesian *aCay (“death”). Compare Ilocano matay, Tagalog matay, Bikol Central matay, Cebuano matay, Maranao matay, and Malay mati.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /məˈte/ [məˈtɛ]
  • Hyphenation: ma‧te

Adjective

mate

  1. dead

Verb

mate

  1. to die

Derived terms

Laboya

Verb

mate

  1. to die

Derived terms

  • haʼmate (“to kill”)

References

  • 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

Lithuanian

Pronunciation

  • (locative singular) IPA(key): /mɐˈtɛ/, [mɐˈtʲɛ]
  • (vocative singular) IPA(key): /ˈmɐːtɛ/, [ˈmɐːtʲɛ]

Noun

matè

  1. locative singular of mãtas (“measure”)

Noun

mãte

  1. vocative singular of mãtas (“measure”)

Luba-Kasai

Noun

mate

  1. saliva

Maori

Etymology

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

Noun

mate

  1. death
  2. sickness, illness, disease
  3. misfortune, calamity, defect
  4. desire, need, want

Derived terms

  • hari mate
  • hanga mate
  • kawe mate
  • mate hinengaro
  • mate hirinaki
  • mate huka
  • mate hukapuri
  • mate hukihuki
  • mate kai
  • mate koroputaputa
  • mate manawa
  • mate Pākehā
  • mate rino
  • mate roro
  • mate tākihi
  • mate tāne
  • mate taurekareka
  • mate urutā
  • mate wahine
  • mate wai

Verb

mate(stative)

  1. to be dead, deceased, killed
  2. to be sick, ill, unwell, diseased
  3. to be defeated, conquered, beaten, overcome
  4. to be in want of, deeply in love

Further reading

  • “mate” in John C. Moorfield, Te Aka: Maori–English, English–Maori Dictionary and Index, 3rd edition, Longman/Pearson Education New Zealand, 2011, →ISBN.

Mapudungun

Noun

mate (Raguileo spelling)

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

See also

References

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

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Middle Low German mate, from Old Saxon gimato, from Proto-West Germanic *gamatjō. Doublet of mette.

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Noun

mate (plural mates)

  1. mate (companion, comrade)
  2. mate (shipmate)
  3. (rare) person, human
Descendants
  • English: mate
  • Scots: mate
References

Etymology 2

Interjection

mate

  1. alternative form of mat (“checkmate”)

Noun

mate

  1. alternative form of mat (“checkmate”)

Adjective

mate

  1. alternative form of mat (“checkmate”)

Etymology 3

Adjective

mate

  1. alternative form of mat (“tired”)
  2. inflection of mat:
    1. weak singular
    2. strong/weak plural

Etymology 4

Verb

mate

  1. alternative form of maten (“to checkmate”)

Etymology 5

Verb

mate

  1. alternative form of maten (“to overpower”)

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From mat.

Verb

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

  1. to feed

Synonyms

References

Pali

Alternative forms

Alternative scripts
  • 𑀫𑀢𑁂 (Brahmi script)
  • मते (Devanagari script)
  • মতে (Bengali script)
  • මතෙ (Sinhalese script)
  • မတေ (Burmese script)
  • มเต or มะเต (Thai script)
  • ᨾᨲᩮ (Tai Tham script)
  • ມເຕ or ມະເຕ (Lao script)
  • មតេ (Khmer script)
  • 𑄟𑄖𑄬 (Chakma script)

Adjective

mate

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

Noun

mate

  1. locative singular of mata (“opinion”)

Polish

Polish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia pl

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish mate, from Quechua mati.

Pronunciation

Noun

mate f (indeclinable)

  1. maté, yerba mate (shrub that produces the beverage maté)
    Synonym: yerba mate
  2. maté, yerba mate (beverage maté)
    Synonym: yerba mate

Further reading

  • mate in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Pronunciation

 

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Spanish mate, from Quechua mati.

Noun

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

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

mate

  1. inflection of matar:
    1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
    2. third-person singular imperative

Rapa Nui

Etymology

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

Adjective

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Verb

mate

  1. to die

Romanian

Etymology

Clipping of matematică.

Noun

mate f (uncountable)

  1. (colloquial) maths

Shona

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *màtáì.

Noun

maté class 6

  1. saliva (liquid secreted into the mouth)

Spanish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈmate/ [ˈma.t̪e]
  • Rhymes: -ate
  • Syllabification: ma‧te

Etymology 1

Borrowed from French mat, mate.

Adjective

mate m or f (masculine and feminine plural mates)

  1. matte (not reflective of light)

Etymology 2

From jaque mate (“checkmate”), from Arabic شَاه مَاتَ (šāh māta), from Persian شاه مات (šâh mât, “the king [is] dead”).

Noun

mate m (plural mates)

  1. (chess) mate, checkmate
    Synonym: jaque mate
  2. (colloquial, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua) a hand gesture
    Synonym: ademán
    Siempre me dan gracia sus mates. ― I always find his hand gestures funny.
  3. (colloquial, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua) a feint; something feigned; a simulation
  4. (colloquial, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua) a gesture that hints something
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Quechua mati.

Noun

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
    Synonym: porongo
  4. Ilex paraguariensis, a plant used to make maté
    Synonyms: yerba mate, hierba mate
  5. (colloquial, Southern Cone) head (top part of the body)
    Synonym: cabeza
Derived terms
Descendants

Etymology 4

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

Adjective

mate m or f (masculine and feminine plural mates)

  1. (South America) tan, tanned (skin colour)
    Synonyms: bronceado, tostado

Etymology 5

Clipping of matemática.

Noun

mate f (plural mates)

  1. (colloquial) math / maths
    Synonym: mates

Etymology 6

Deverbal from matar (“kill”).

Noun

mate m (plural mates)

  1. (basketball) dunk, slam dunk (the act of dunking: put the ball directly downward through the hoop while grabbing onto the rim with power)
    Synonyms: clavada, volcada, retacada, hundida, donqueo

Verb

mate

  1. inflection of matar:
    1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
    2. third-person singular imperative

Further reading

Swahili

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *màtáì.

Pronunciation

Noun

mate class VI (plural only)

  1. saliva

Swedish

Alternative forms

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish mate, from Quechua mati.

Noun

mate n

  1. maté (beverage)
    Synonym: paraguayte
    • 1900, Jane Gernandt-Claine, Pampan‎, Gernandts förlag, accessed at Litteraturbanken.se, courtesy of Uppsala universitetsbibliotek, archived from the original on 16 August 2025, page 57:
      [E]stancieron hade lärt sin syster att dricka mate.
      The estanciero had taught his sister to drink maté.

Declension

More information nominative, genitive ...

Derived terms

References

Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish mate, from jaque mate (“checkmate”), from Arabic شَاه مَاتَ (šāh māta), from Persian شاه مات (šâh mât, “the king [is] dead”).

Pronunciation

Noun

mate (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜆᜒ) (chess)

  1. checkmate

See also

Further reading

Tahitian

Etymology

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

Adjective

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Verb

mate

  1. to die

Tetum

Etymology

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

Adjective

mate

  1. dead (no longer alive)

Noun

mate

  1. death

Verb

mate

  1. to die

Further reading

  • Fransiskus Monteiro (1985), Kamus Tetun-Indonesia [Tetum-Indonesian Dictionary] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Pusat Pembinaan dan Pengembangan Bahasa, Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan

Tokelauan

Pronunciation

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

Etymology 1

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

Verb

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
  • 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

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

Noun

mate

  1. guess

Verb

mate

  1. (transitive) to guess
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Noun

mate

  1. (to a male) sororal nephew

References

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

Tongan

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *mate.

Pronunciation

Noun

mate

  1. death
  2. the dead

Adjective

mate

  1. dead

Uneapa

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

Verb

mate

  1. to die

Further reading

  • Ross, Malcolm D. (2016), Andrew Pawley, editor, The lexicon of Proto-Oceanic: Volume 5, People: body and mind, Canberra: Australian National University, →ISBN, →OCLC; republished as Meredith Osmond, editor, (Please provide a date or year)

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