English · Slang Historical

matey

Preserved but no longer current.

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

A labourer in one of Her Majesty’s dockyards. Common elaboration of the word MATE.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Công nhân trong xưởng đóng tàu của Nữ hoàng

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)

Where it’s used: Origin British & Irish English

Sources & notes

Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.

Topics: Historical slang (1800s)

Common questions

What does “matey” mean?

A labourer in one of Her Majesty’s dockyards. Common elaboration of the word MATE.

Is “matey” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

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