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Mate

//meɪt// name, noun, verb, slang

Definitions

Proper Noun

1
A barangay of Tayabas, Quezon, Philippines.

Noun

1
A fellow, comrade, colleague, partner or someone with whom something is shared, e.g. shipmate, classmate.
"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
Clipping of checkmate. abbreviation, alt-of, clipping
3
Alternative spelling of maté, an aromatic tea-like drink prepared from the holly yerba maté (Ilex paraguariensis). alt-of, alternative
4
a chess move constituting an inescapable and indefensible attack on the opponent's king wordnet
5
A breeding partner. especially
"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."

Show 18 more definitions

6
The abovementioned plant; the leaves and shoots used for the tea
7
an exact duplicate wordnet
8
A friend, usually of the same sex. Australia, British, Ireland, New-Zealand, South-Africa, colloquial
"I'm going to the pub with a few mates."
9
South American tea-like drink made from leaves of a South American holly called mate wordnet
10
Friendly term of address to a stranger, usually male, of similar age. Australia, British, Ireland, New-Zealand, South-Africa, colloquial
"Excuse me, mate, have you got the time?"
11
the officer below the master on a commercial ship wordnet
12
In naval ranks, a non-commissioned officer or his subordinate (e.g. Boatswain's Mate, Gunner's Mate, Sailmaker's Mate, etc).
13
informal term for a friend of the same sex wordnet
14
A ship's officer, subordinate to the master on a commercial ship.
15
the partner of an animal (especially a sexual partner) wordnet
16
A first mate.
17
a person's partner in marriage wordnet
18
A technical assistant in certain trades (e.g. gasfitter's mate, plumber's mate); sometimes an apprentice.
19
a fellow member of a team wordnet
20
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."
21
South American holly; leaves used in making a drink like tea wordnet
22
A suitable companion; a match; an equal.
"Ye knew me once no mate / For you; there sitting where you durst not soar."
23
one of a pair wordnet

Verb

1
To match, fit together without space between. intransitive
"The pieces of the puzzle mate perfectly."
2
Clipping of checkmate. abbreviation, alt-of, clipping
3
To confuse; to confound. obsolete
"I think you are all mated, or stark mad."
4
place an opponent's king under an attack from which it cannot escape and thus ending the game wordnet
5
To copulate. intransitive
"“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.”"

Show 11 more definitions

6
bring two objects, ideas, or people together wordnet
7
To pair in order to raise offspring. intransitive
8
engage in sexual intercourse wordnet
9
To arrange in matched pairs. transitive
10
To introduce (animals) together for the purpose of breeding. transitive
11
To copulate with. transitive
12
To marry; to match (a person). transitive
"If she be mated with an equal husband."
13
To match oneself against; to oppose as equal; to compete with. obsolete, transitive
"There is no passion in the mind of man so weak but it mates and masters the fear of death."
14
To fit (objects) together without space between. transitive
15
To come together as companions, comrades, partners, etc. intransitive
"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."
16
To move (a space shuttle orbiter) onto the back of an aircraft that can carry it. transitive

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English mate, a borrowing from Middle Low German mate (“messmate”) (replacing Middle English mett, mette (“table companion, mate, partner”), from Old English ġemetta (“sharer of food, table-guest”)), from Old Saxon gimato, 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)).

Etymology 2

Etymology 3

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

Etymology 4

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

Etymology 5

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

Etymology 6

See maté.

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