Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1400-1500
Language: Old French
Origin: eschec mat, from Arabic shah mat, from Persian, 'the king is left helpless'

checkmate

 noun
     
Related topics: Board Games
check‧mate [uncountable and countable]
1DGB the position of the king (=most important piece) in chess at the end of the game, when it is being directly attacked and cannot escape
2 a situation in which someone has been completely defeated
—checkmate verb [transitive]
The king is checkmated and the game is over.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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