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Female for "Mate"?

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Garpal Gumnut

Garpal Gumnut

Ross Island Hotel
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Does anyone on asf know what a suitable salutation is for "mate" when one is addressing a female.

Some recent posters on asf with male sounding names have taken me to task for calling them "mate".

I had thought of calling them "love" or "darling", but didn't want to cause further offence.

I have heard some people use "darl" or "hun".

When I lived in Atlanta GA. it was "pie" or "chick" , but that was some time ago.

Any suggestions would be gratefully appreciated.

gg
 
Garpal Gumnut said:
Does anyone on asf know what a suitable salutation is for "mate" when one is addressing a female.

Some recent posters on asf with male sounding names have taken me to task for calling them "mate".

I had thought of calling them "love" or "darling", but didn't want to cause further offence.

I have heard some people use "darl" or "hun".

When I lived in Atlanta GA. it was "pie" or "chick" , but that was some time ago.

Any suggestions would be gratefully appreciated.

gg
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GG, it seems like a tight spot you are in. If a female is pulling you up over "mate" on a forum then it may well be possible you will be branded a chauvinist if you were to use any of the above terms in an endearing way.

Maybe "Mzzz (Ms)", folk or folks (as in "hi forum Folk") take a leaf from the French and choose "Mademoiselle"? This may of course be too formal.

Unfortunately, GG you may just be on a hiding to nothing on this one.

Good luck.
 
That's BS i always call chicks mate, and if they dont like it i drop a few extra 'mates' in there..... tell them to go blame their bra burning predecessors, welcome to the world of equality ladies.

If that doesn't work you can always try 'mole', just as easy to type and you only have to change 2 letters. ;)
 
I have consulted Dharma, who doesn't really know.

Further she doesn't know if there is an equivalent salutation for a female to call another female except by their name.

They usually call each other by their names !!, as in Penelope your whatever is whatever, as opposed to males who would say , Mate, your whatever is whatever.

I will have to consult a mate, sorry a person who is an anthropologist specialising in linguistics wetfti, to get it's opinion on this conundrum.

Ain't the world getting complicated.

gg
 
Australians are that rooted academically thanks to Labor teachers, greenies and poisonous wombats that the word mate is OK to use toward women, actually young women, older women would prefer you don't undress them at all.
 
There is absolutely, definitely, categorically, emphatically, nothing worse than "Darl".... (unless it's sheila) :2twocents

I find Dudette quite amusing....
 
Garpal Gumnut said:
Does anyone on asf know what a suitable salutation is for "mate" when one is addressing a female.

Some recent posters on asf with male sounding names have taken me to task for calling them "mate".

I had thought of calling them "love" or "darling", but didn't want to cause further offence.

I have heard some people use "darl" or "hun".

When I lived in Atlanta GA. it was "pie" or "chick" , but that was some time ago.

Any suggestions would be gratefully appreciated.

gg
Click to expand...


Comrade?
 
Originally posted by AWG

"Comrade?"
Click to expand...

Sounds like a left wing union lovers 'term' AWG.

I like maaate GG!! I sometimes say gooday guys to both sexes when greeting them collectively, usually to the younger set. Some possibly might not like that either but since when have we been able to please all women anyway? :D
 
Ok,

Friends, ASFers, countrymen and countrywomen,

Lend me your ears.

Can we agree that on this forum whether one is male or female, that it is ok to address each other as

mate.


gg
 
Garpal Gumnut said:
Ok,

Friends, ASFers, countrymen and countrywomen,

Lend me your ears.

Can we agree that on this forum whether one is male or female, that it is ok to address each other as

mate.


gg
Click to expand...

Given that "mate" has become an Australian colloqual expression, i vote for the affirmative, it is okay to call people mate regardless of gender.
 
nulla nulla said:
Given that "mate" has become an Australian colloqual expression, i vote for the affirmative, it is okay to call people mate regardless of gender.
Click to expand...

I concur.

The word "mateship" is now in the Aussie constitution thanks to Little Johnny therefore it applies to either gender.
 
gg, one of my long time associates does sometimes address her female friends as 'mate'. But I must admit she is the only female in my close circle who uses the term freely that I'm aware of at the moment.

But "mate" does seem to me to be morphing into a non gender specific term.
 
It's a bit too masculine for me after all " I'm a laaadddyyy ", just one of those things that always turned me off coming out of a mans mouth regarding females.
 
Blitzed said:
It's a bit too masculine for me after all " I'm a laaadddyyy ", just one of those things that always turned me off coming out of a mans mouth regarding females.
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http://www.thefreedictionary.com/mate

mate 1 (mt)
n.
1. One of a matched pair: the mate to this glove.
2. A spouse.
3.
a. Either of a pair of animals or birds that associate in order to propagate.
b. Either of a pair of animals brought together for breeding.
4.
a. A person with whom one is in close association; an associate.
b. Chiefly British A good friend or companion.
c. A person with whom one shares living quarters. Often used in combination: advertised for a new flatmate.
5. A deck officer on a merchant ship ranking next below the master.
6. A U.S. Navy petty officer who is an assistant to a warrant officer.
v. mat·ed, mat·ing, mates
v.tr.
1. To join closely; pair.
2. To unite in marriage.
3. To pair (animals) for breeding.
v.intr.
1. To become joined in marriage.
2.
a. To be paired for reproducing; breed.
b. To copulate.

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Don't see anything in there about 'mate' being "masculine"?
 
Unfortunately mate, the dictionary usage usually refers to males using the expression to other males.

From Wikipedia

Usage

Mate is widely used among men in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Ireland to address male strangers as a nicety. It is increasingly used in European countries such as Germany, Italy, Turkey and Spain. In other English-speaking countries, such as the United States and Canada, mate is generally seen as referring to a person's spouse (when used as a noun) or a zoological term for copulation (when used as a verb). However words like classmate, roommate and shipmate, which remain in common usage around the world, keep the original meaning. In the sense of referring to a friend the term is informal and is a mild endearment, though it can be used ironically as an accompaniment to an aggressive or rude statement.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mate_(colloquialism)

gg
 
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