match
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match¹
- /mæt͡ʃ/
Rhymes with -ætʃ
Where it comes from
From Middle English macche, mecche, from Old English mæċċa, ġemæċċa (“companion, mate, wife, one suited to another”), from Proto-West Germanic *makkjō, *gamakkjō (“partner, equal”), from Proto-Germanic *makô, from Proto-Indo-European *mag- (“to knead, work”). Compare Danish mage (“mate”), Icelandic maki (“spouse”).
noun matches
- Any contest or trial of strength or skill, or to determine superiority. Ferrer his Taberd vvith rich Verry ſpred, / VVell knovvne in many a vvarlike match before; […]
- A competitive sporting event such as a boxing meet, a baseball game, or a cricket match. My local team are playing in a match against their arch-rivals today.
- Equality of conditions in contest or competition. It were no match, your nail against his horn.
- A pair of items or entities with mutually suitable characteristics. The carpet and curtains are a match.
- Someone with a measure of an attribute equaling or exceeding the object of comparison. He knew he had met his match.
- Equivalence; a state of correspondence; a counterpart. The seat to window match is excellent and there are half-size partition screens between bays.
- An agreement or compact. Thy hand upon that match.
- A marriage.
- A candidate for matrimony; one to be gained in marriage. She […] was looked upon as the richest match of the West.
- Suitability.
- A perforated board, block of plaster, hardened sand, etc., in which a pattern is partly embedded when a mould is made, for giving shape to the surfaces of separation between the parts of the mould.
match²
- /mæt͡ʃ/
Rhymes with -ætʃ
Where it comes from
From Middle English macchen (“to marry; be paired with”), from the noun (see above).
verb matches · matching · matched
- To agree; to be equal; to correspond. Their interests didn't match, so it took a long time to agree what to do together.
- To agree with; to be equal to; to correspond to. His interests didn't match her interests.
- To equal or exceed in achievement. She matched him at every turn: anything he could do, she could do as well or better.
- To make a successful match or pairing. They found out about his color-blindness when he couldn't match socks properly.
- To unite in marriage, to mate. […]Adam's sons are my brethren; and truly, I hold it a sin to match in my kindred.
- To fit together, or make suitable for fitting together; specifically, to furnish with a tongue and groove at the edges. to match boards
- To be an example of a rule or regex. The behavior matched one or more rules and was rejected by an edit filter.
match³
- /mæt͡ʃ/
Rhymes with -ætʃ
Where it comes from
Etymology tree
Ancient Greek μύξα (múxa)bor.
Latin myxa?
Vulgar Latin micca
Old French meschebor.
Middle English mecche
English match
From Middle English macche, mecche (“wick (of a candle)”), from Old French mesche, meische, from Vulgar Latin micca (compare Catalan metxa, Spanish mecha, Italian miccia), which in turn is probably from Latin myxa (“nozzle, curved part of a lamp”), from Ancient Greek μύξα (múxa, “lamp wick”).
noun matches
- A small wooden stick specially treated with chemicals to produce flame upon contact with another chemical, from the frictional heat produced by striking it against a surface, or both; other similar items made from chemically-treated paper, cardboard, etc. He struck a match and lit his pipe.
- Synonym of taper, a thin stick used to transfer flame, as from tender to a candle.
- Synonym of fuse, a long wick used to transfer flame to an explosive device.
