mate

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   A friend.

   I'm going to the pub with a few mates.

2. 2
   noun

   A fellow member of a team or group.

   He passed the ball to his teammate.

3. 3
   noun

   The sexual partner of an animal.

   The male bird sings to attract a mate.

4. 4
   verb

   (of animals) To come together to produce young.

   Many birds mate in the spring.

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…

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