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matador

 - 3 dictionary results

mat⋅a⋅dor

  [mat-uh-dawr]
–noun
1. the principal bullfighter in a bullfight who passes the bull with a muleta and then, in many countries, kills it with a sword thrust; a torero.
2. one of the principal cards in skat and certain other games.
3. (initial capital letter) a jet-powered U.S. surface-to-surface missile.
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Origin:
1665–75; < Sp, equiv. to mata(r) to kill (perh. < VL *mattāre, presumed deriv. of LL mattus soft, weak; cf. matte 1 ) +-dor -tor
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To matador
mat·a·dor   (māt'ə-dôr')   
n.  

  1. A bullfighter who performs the final passes and kills the bull.

  2. Games One of the highest trumps in certain card games.


[Spanish, from matar, to kill, possibly from Vulgar Latin *mattāre, to beat senseless, perhaps from Latin mattus, stupefied; see mat2.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

matador 
1674, from Sp. matador, lit. "killer," from matar "to kill or wound," probably from Arabic mata "he died," from Persian (see second element in checkmate).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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