mate

/meɪt/

//meɪt// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"mate" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“mate” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #2,743 in English word frequency and used as a noun.

#2,743
frequency rank, English
4
letters
3
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A fellow, comrade, colleague, partner or someone with whom something is shared, e.g. shipmate, classmate.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

mate vs ME
0% similar
mate vs MT
0% similar
mate vs may
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for mate
PropertyValue
Headwordmate
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/meɪt/
Letters4
Frequency rank#2,743
Misspellings tracked3
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mate” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). mate lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for mate is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /meɪt/. Corpus data places it at rank #2,743 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 3 likely wrong-spelling variants for mate, with forms such as "amte", "mmate", and "mtae". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "ME", "MT", "may", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: 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-Ger… The correct English form is mate, spelled M-A-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A fellow, comrade, colleague, partner or someone with whom something is shared, e.g. shipmate, classmate.
  2. 2
    A breeding partner.
  3. 3
    A friend, usually of the same sex.
  4. 4
    Friendly term of address to a stranger, usually male, of similar age.
  5. 5
    In naval ranks, a non-commissioned officer or his subordinate (e.g. Boatswain's Mate, Gunner's Mate, Sailmaker's Mate, etc).
  6. 6
    A ship's officer, subordinate to the master on a commercial ship.
  7. 7
    A first mate.
  8. 8
    A technical assistant in certain trades (e.g. gasfitter's mate, plumber's mate); sometimes an apprentice.
  9. 9
    The other member of a matched pair of objects.
  10. 10
    A suitable companion; a match; an equal.

Etymology

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)).

This word in other languages

pareja(Español)copain(Français)Gegenstück(Deutsch)parceiro(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: amte,mmate,mtae

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of mate - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

amte2mmate1mtae2
Edit distance from "mate"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "mate"?
"mate" is spelled M-A-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is /meɪt/.
What does "mate" mean?
As a noun, "mate" means: A fellow, comrade, colleague, partner or someone with whom something is shared, e.g. shipmate, classmate.
What words are commonly confused with "mate"?
"mate" is commonly confused with "ME", "MT", "may". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "mate"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mate" is /meɪt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "mate"?
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... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “mate”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is M-A-T-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /meɪt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “ME” - see the side-by-side comparison. mate vs ME
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list