mata-mata
See also: matamata, Matamata, matamatá, and mata mata
English
Etymology
From Malay mata-mata (“eyes”), plural of mata. Doublet of maka, from Hawaiian.
Noun
mata-mata (plural mata-matas)
- (Singapore, Malaysia, slang) A police officer.
Anagrams
- Mama Tata
Indonesian
Etymology
Reduplication of mata (“eye”), inherited from Malay mata-mata.
Noun
mata-mata
- plural of mata
Noun
mata-mata (plural banyak mata-mata)
- spy
- Synonyms: agen rahasia, detektif, intelijen
Affixed terms
- memata-matai
- pemata-mataan
Usage notes
The word is part of false friends between Standard Malay and Indonesian due to shared etymology. The Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore usage can be seen in Malay mata-mata.
Further reading
- “mata-mata” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.
Malay
Alternative forms
- مات٢
Noun
mata-mata
- plural of mata
Noun
mata-mata (Jawi spelling مات٢, plural banyak mata-mata, informal 1st possessive mata-mataku, 2nd possessive mata-matamu, 3rd possessive mata-matanya)
- policeman
- spy
- Synonyms: ejen rahsia, pengintip, perisik
Usage notes
The word is part of false friends between Standard Malay and Indonesian due to shared etymology. The Indonesian usage can be seen in Indonesian mata-mata.
Synonyms
- luluk / lolok / لولوق
Descendants
- Indonesian: mata-mata
- → English: mata-mata
- → Chinese: 馬打／马打 (mǎdǎ)
- → Thai: หมาต๋า (mǎa-dtǎa)
- →? Vietnamese: mã tà
Further reading
- “mata-mata” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.
- "mata-mata" in Kamus Dewan, Fourth Edition, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, →ISBN, 2005.