ate
- 01 A1 Beginner
v.the past tense of eat. You use this to say you finished a meal in the past.
v.the simple past tense of the irregular verb 'eat'.
Simple“We ate a large pizza for dinner last night.”
In context“The guests ate heartily during the reception, praising the chef for the diverse selection of local delicacies.”
UsageIrregular past tense form of 'eat'.
PitfallI have ate my lunch already. I have eaten my lunch already.In standard English, 'ate' is the past tense, while 'eaten' is the past participle used with 'have'.
- 02 C1 Advanced
n.a word used in the Philippines for an older sister or a slightly older woman.
n.a term of address or kinship title for an elder sister or an older female contemporary.
Simple“My ate helped me with my homework after school.”
In context“In many Filipino households, the eldest daughter is addressed as 'Ate' as a sign of respect and familial hierarchy.”
UsageCommonly used in Philippine English and Tagalog-speaking communities.
Teacher's tipThis is a cultural loanword; outside of Filipino contexts, learners should use 'older sister' or 'ma'am'.
Synonyms
Probably a remodelling of earlier eat by analogy with other strong verbs such as break:†brake, give:gave, speak:†spake; compare the same process in rare Middle English at (“ate”) besides more usual et. However, the pronunciation /ɛt/ likely continues Middle English et, from Old English ǣt, from Proto-West Germanic āt, from Proto-Germanic ēt, with shortening as in e.g. thread.
Borrowed from Tagalog ate (“elder sister”), from Hokkien 阿姊 (á-ché, “eldest sister”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.