mate

noun MAH-teh Rare

Origin: From Arabic māt (dead, defeated), via Persian.

Also means

checkmate

Usage Note

Mate has two main senses: in chess it is short for jaque mate (checkmate); in South American culture it is the caffeine-rich herbal drink (mate or yerba mate) sipped through a bombilla (metal straw) from a gourd. In Spain mate in the drink sense is uncommon; the chess sense is universally understood. As an adjective (color mate) it also means 'matte' (non-shiny).

Examples

"El mate es muy popular en Argentina."

Natural Translation

Mate is very popular in Argentina.

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