maat

See also: Maat and mAat

English

Etymology 1

From Afrikaans maat (“mate, buddy”). Doublet of mate.

Noun

maat (plural maats)

1. (South Africa, slang) mate; buddy
   • 2007, William Higham, The Hammarskjold Killing, page 226:

     A lot of my maats went west.

Etymology 2

Learned borrowing from Egyptian mꜣꜥt (“truth, righteousness, justice”).

Noun

maat (uncountable)

1. (philosophy, historical) The ancient Egyptian concept of justice, order, and harmony.

Anagrams

• AAMT

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch maat.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɑːt/

Noun

maat (plural maats or maters, diminutive maatjie)

1. mate, buddy

Descendants

• → English: maat

Dutch

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

• IPA^(key): /maːt/
• Hyphenation: maat
• Rhymes: -aːt

Etymology 1

From older mate, from Middle Dutch mate, from Old Dutch *māta, from Proto-West Germanic *mātu, from Proto-Germanic *mētō.

Noun

maat f (plural maten, diminutive maatje n)

1. measure, size
2. rhythm, beat

Usage notes

• The dative form mate persists in fixed expressions such as met mate and in welke mate, although the distinction between this dative and the identical old nominative has become muddled.

Alternative forms

• mate

Derived terms

• bovenmaats
• confectiemaat
• hemdsmaat
• kindermaat
• kledingmaat
• maatbeker
• maatgevend
• maatglas
• maatkostuum
• maatpak
• maatregel
• maatstaf
• maatwerk
• mateloos
• matig
• ondermaats
• schoenmaat

 

Related terms

• meten

Descendants

• Afrikaans: maat
• Berbice Creole Dutch: mete
• Negerhollands: maat, meet, maet
• → Indonesian: emat
• → Papiamentu: mat

Etymology 2

From a borrowing of Middle Low German māt, māte, from Old Saxon *gimato, of West Germanic origin, from Proto-Germanic *gamatjô, itself from *ga- (“together”) + *matjô, from *matiz (“food”).

Cognate with Old High German gimazzo, English mate.

Noun

maat m (plural maten or maats, diminutive maatje n)

1. mate, buddy

   Synonym: mattie

2. (close) colleague, shipmate etc.
3. low sailor rank
4. (law, business) partner (in a business venture)

   Synonyms: vennoot, compagnon, partner

Derived terms

• koksmaat
• maatschap
• maatschappij
• ploegmaat
• scheepsmaat
• teammaat

 

Related terms

• mattie

 

Descendants

• Afrikaans: maat
  • → English: maat
• Berbice Creole Dutch: mati
• Negerhollands: maat, maet
• Skepi Creole Dutch: matte
• → Polish: mat
• → Sranan Tongo: mati (via the diminutive)
  • Aukan: mati
    • Ndyuka-Trio Pidgin: mati
  • → Dutch: mattie
  • → Kari'na: mati

Finnish

Noun

maat

1. nominative plural of maa

Anagrams

• tama

Mansaka

Etymology

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(ma-)zaqat, compare Malay jahat.

Adjective

maat

1. bad

Middle English

Etymology 1

Noun

maat

1. Alternative form of mat (“checkmate”)

Adjective

maat

1. Alternative form of mat (“checkmate”)

Etymology 2

Adjective

maat

1. Alternative form of mat (“tired”)

Etymology 3

Verb

maat

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

Tabasco Nahuatl

Noun

maat

1. water

Volapük

Noun

maat (nominative plural maats)

1. (nautical) mast

Declension

declension of maat

	singular	plural
nominative	maat	maats
genitive	maata	maatas
dative	maate	maates
accusative	maati	maatis
vocative 1	o maat!	o maats!
predicative 2	maatu	maatus

• ¹ status as a case is disputed
• ² in later, non-classical Volapük only