checkmate

English

Etymology

From Middle English chekmat, from Old French eschec mat, from Arabic شَاه مَاتَ (šāh māta), from Classical Persian شاه مات (šāh māt, “the king [is] amazed”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈt͡ʃɛkmeɪt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Interjection

checkmate

1. (chess) Word called out by the victor when making a move that wins the game.
2. (by extension) Said when one has placed a person in a losing situation with no escape.

Alternative forms

• check and mate

Synonyms

• (chess): mate

Translations

said when making the conclusive move in chess

• Albanian: shah mat
• Arabic: شَاهْ مَات m (šāh māt), مَات (ar) m (māt), كِش مَلِك m (kiš malik)

  Egyptian Arabic: كش ملك (kešš malek)

• Armenian: շախ և մատ (šax ew mat), մատ (hy) (mat)
• Belarusian: мат (mat), шах і мат (šax i mat)
• Bengali: কিস্তিমাত (bn) (kistimat)
• Bulgarian: мат (mat)
• Catalan: escac i mat (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 將死／将死 (zh) (jiāngsǐ), 將軍／将军 (zh) (jiāngjūn)

• Czech: mat (cs), šach mat m
• Danish: skakmat c
• Dutch: schaakmat (nl) n, mat (nl) n
• Estonian: šahh ja matt
• Faroese: skák og mát
• Finnish: shakki ja matti
• French: échec et mat (fr)
• Galician: xaque mate (gl), mate (gl) m
• Georgian: შამათი (ka) (šamati)
• German: schachmatt (de), schach und matt
• Greek: ματ (el) (mat)
• Hebrew: מָט (he) (mat)
• Hindi: मात (hi) (māt), शहमात (śahmāt)
• Hungarian: sakk-matt (hu)
• Indonesian: syahmat, skakmat, sekakmat (id)
• Italian: scacco matto (it)
• Japanese: チェックメイト (ja) (chekkumeito), 詰み (ja) (つみ, tsumi)
• Kalmyk: мад (mad)
• Khmer: ស្លាប់ក្រឡា (slap krɑlaa)
• Korean: 외통수 (oetongsu), 체크메이트 (chekeumeiteu)
• Latvian: šahs un mats
• Macedonian: шах-мат (šah-mat), мат (mat)
• Malay: syahmat (ms)
• Maori: whakamiere
• Middle English: chekmat
• Mongolian: мад (mn) (mad)
• Norwegian: sjakkmatt
• Persian: کیش و مات (kiš o mât), شاه مات (fa) (šâh mât), شهمات (fa) (šahmât), مات (fa) (mât)
• Polish: mat (pl) m, szach mat, szach i mat
• Portuguese: xeque-mate (pt) m, xaque-mate m
• Romanian: șah mat, mat (ro)
• Russian: мат (ru) m (mat), шах и мат (šax i mat)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: шах-мат, мат

  Roman: šah-mat (sh), mat (sh)

• Slovak: šachmat, mat
• Slovene: šah mat, mat (sl)
• Spanish: jaque mate, mate (es) m
• Swedish: schackmatt (sv)
• Tagalog: mate (tl)
• Tajik: шоҳ мот (šoh mot)
• Thai: รุกฆาต (rúk-kâat), รุกฆาตแล้ว (rúk-kâat-lɛ́ɛo)
• Turkish: şah mat (tr)
• Ukrainian: мат m (mat), шах і мат (šax i mat)
• Urdu: شاہ اور مات (śāh aur māt), شاہ مات (śāh māt)
• Vietnamese: chiếu tướng
• Welsh: siachmat m
• Yiddish: מאַט (mat)

Noun

checkmate (countable and uncountable, plural checkmates)

1. The conclusive victory in a game of chess that occurs when an opponent's king is threatened with unavoidable capture.
2. (figuratively, by extension) Any losing situation with no escape; utter defeat.

Derived terms

• two-move checkmate

 

Related terms

• stalemate

Translations

conclusive victory in a game of chess

• Arabic: شَاه مَات (šāh māt)
• Armenian: շախմատ (hy) (šaxmat)
• Belarusian: мат m (mat)
• Bulgarian: мат m (mat)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 將死／将死 (zh) (jiāngsǐ), 將軍／将军 (zh) (jiāngjūn)

• Czech: mat (cs) m
• Danish: skakmat, mat (da)
• Dutch: schaakmat (nl), mat (nl)
• Esperanto: ŝakmato (eo)
• Estonian: matt
• Faroese: mát n
• Finnish: matti (fi)
• French: échec et mat (fr) m
• Galician: xaque mate (gl) m
• Georgian: შამათი (ka) (šamati)
• German: Schachmatt (de) n
• Greek: ματ (el) n (mat)
• Hebrew: מט (he) (mat)
• Hungarian: sakk-matt (hu), matt (hu)
• Italian: scacco matto (it) m
• Japanese: 詰み (ja) (つみ, tsumi), チェックメイト (ja) (chekkumeito)
• Korean: 체크메이트 (chekeumeiteu), 외통수 (oetongsu)
• Maori: whakamiere
• Mongolian: мад (mn) (mad)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: sjakkmatt

  Nynorsk: sjakkmatt

• Persian: کیش و مات (kiš o mât), شهمات (fa) (šahmât), مات (fa) (mât)
• Polish: mat (pl) m
• Portuguese: xeque-mate (pt) m, xaque-mate m
• Romanian: șah mat n, mat (ro) n
• Russian: шах и мат m (šax i mat), мат (ru) m (mat)
• Scottish Gaelic: clos m
• Slovak: mat m
• Slovene: šah mat m, mat (sl) m
• Spanish: jaque mate m, mate (es) m
• Swedish: matt (sv) c, schack matt (sv) c
• Thai: รุกฆาต (rúk-kâat)
• Ukrainian: мат m (mat)
• Vietnamese: chiếu hết, chiếu bí
• Zazaki: sah mat c du

losing situation with no escape

• Bulgarian: мат m (mat)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 徹底失敗／彻底失败 (chèdǐ shībài)

• Czech: matová situace f
• Estonian: lüüasaamine
• Finnish: nurkka (fi), umpikuja (fi)
• German: Schachmatt (de) n, Niederlage (de) f
• Hungarian: patthelyzet (hu), zsákutca (hu), vesztes/reménytelen/kilátástalan helyzet
• Middle English: chekmat
• Persian: کیش و مات (kiš o mât)
• Portuguese: xeque-mate (pt) m
• Russian: please add this translation if you can
• Slovak: matová situácia f
• Zazaki: mat c du

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Korean: ^{(please verify)} 외통 장군 (oetong janggun)
• Latin: ^{(please verify)} latrunculusque matum
• Maranao: ^{(please verify)} samat

Verb

checkmate (third-person singular simple present checkmates, present participle checkmating, simple past and past participle checkmated)

1. (transitive, chess) To put the king of an opponent into checkmate.

   That jerk checkmated me in four moves!

2. (transitive, by extension) To place in a losing situation that has no escape.

Translations

to put an opponent into checkmate

• Bulgarian: мати́рам (bg) (matíram)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 把...將死／把...将死 (bǎ...jiāngsǐ)

• Czech: matovat, dát mat
• Esperanto: ŝakmatigi
• Faroese: máta
• Finnish: matittaa (fi), tehdä matti
• French: faire échec et mat
• Georgian: დაშამათება (dašamateba) (verbal noun), აშამათებს (ašamatebs) (infinitive)
• Hungarian: mattot ad, megmattol (hu)
• Italian: dare scacco matto
• Japanese: チェックメート (chekkumēto)
• Maori: whakamiere
• Mongolian: мад хийх (mad xiix)
• Persian: شهمات کردن (šahmât kardan), مات کردن (fa) (mât kardan)
• Polish: zamatować pf, dać mata pf
• Russian: ста́вить мат impf (stávitʹ mat), поста́вить мат pf (postávitʹ mat)
• Scottish Gaelic: cuir clos air
• Slovak: dať šach mat
• Slovene: matirati
• Swedish: schackmatta (sv), sätta matt, göra matt, sätta schackmatt, göra schackmatt
• Thai: รุกฆาต (rúk-kâat)
• Vietnamese: chiếu bí

to lead to a situation of no escape

• Bulgarian: матирам (bg) (matiram)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 挫敗／挫败 (zh) (cuòbài)

• Finnish: saattaa umpikujaan, panna ahtaalle
• Hungarian: sarokba szorít (hu)
• Mongolian: мад тавих (mad tavix), мад цохих (mad coxix)
• Russian: please add this translation if you can

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Romanian: ^{(please verify)} șah mat
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} dar jaque mate, ^{(please verify)} dar mate