It means friend. Depending on where you live there is often a coloquial term commonly used for this, for example, pal, mate, bud, brother, dude, man, bro. It is not usually meant to be condescending. For example, “Fred is one of my best buddies".
You can refer to someone's friends as their mates.
Mate is typically British, Australian, or Canadian I believe I hardly ever use it unless I am trying to do a bad British accent. If you say it in America it will instantaneously highlight you as a foreigner. Pal is a less formal than friend but more formal than dude.
Key Difference: Both buddy and pal are one and the same thing. Buddy is an informal way to refer to a male friend. Pal is an informal term used for a male friend or it can also be used for talking to a man who has made you angry. Buddy and pal are also used as synonyms.
Key Difference: Buddy is an informal way to refer to a male friend. Dude is a slang term in American English for an individual. Many would have heard or used the words, buddy and dude, when sitting or chit-chatting with friends, or when a guy is asking for something to an unknown person.
The use of the term buddy may be offensive to the individual, even if they do not show it or are not capable of communicating this. The use of the term buddy may be offensive to the individual, even if they do not show it or are not capable of communicating this.
What does buddy mean? Buddy is most commonly used as an informal word for a friend. Buddy is often used as a form of address (as in Hey, buddy, I haven't seen you in a while!) or a term of endearment (an affectionate way of referring to someone). It is sometimes shortened to bud.
A pal is a good friend.
Etymology 1
1802, colloquial butty (“companion”), also the form of an older dialect term meaning workmate, associated with coal mining. Itself believed derived from 1530 as booty fellow, a partner with whom one shares booty or loot. Alternatively, an alteration of brother.
If you're just looking for a term, a reference, you could call someone your "pal". That is also a word more common for males, but consider the term pen-pal; it can be gender-neutral. However, "pal" is rarely used in any positive sense today. Alternatively you could use "BFF" (best-friend-forever) or "best friend".
Someone's mate is their spouse, partner, boyfriend, or girlfriend. Your grandmother's long-term sweetheart is her mate. Awwww. A husband or wife is one kind of mate, and animals have mates too, chosen for reproduction and sometimes to assist in raising babies.
Whereas mate has traditionally been understood as a male solidarity term used 'by males and for males', this preliminary survey shows that more young women, aged between 18 and 29 years, are reporting their use of the address term mate compared to women aged over 50 years.
a friend: often used as a term of address between males. (informal)
The Australian National Dictionary explains that the Australian usages of mate derive from the British word 'mate' meaning 'a habitual companion, an associate, fellow, comrade; a fellow-worker or partner', and that in British English it is now only in working-class use.
Mate is used as a term of endearment, but also frequently used to casually ingratiate oneself with a stranger or new acquaintance. You might refer to a waiter or fellow bar fly using the word 'mate'. When used to address somebody or get their attention, the word mate is usually reserved for men only.
Meaning of mate in Essential English Dictionary
a friend: She's my best mate. You call a man 'mate' when you are speaking to him informally: Thanks, mate.
A buddy is a close friend.
The term buddy is used informally when addressing someone there is both a negative and positive connotation to the word: In the positive sense buddy would literally mean what the word means a close friend. In the negative sense buddy is mean to belittle to get someones attention while addressing them informally.
Another word that's used in a very similar way in Australia and the US, but less commonly in the UK, is buddy, or the plural: buddies. Again, you can use it to greet or address someone, or to describe your friends. It's also used to mean “partner” in some situations.
The Friend Zone, also known as the “buddy zone” or “non-romantic zone,” is a relationship status between 2 people that is exclusively non-romantic. Usually, one party is friend-zoned and that person usually wants to “get out” of the friend zone by becoming a potential romantic partner.
A pal is a casual acquaintance who may develop into a friend. You can say “You're my friend”, but you don't need to say “You're my pal”. “Friend” usually signifies a relationship of somewhat greater depth. We don't, for example, sing “What a pal we have in Jesus”.
Similarly, if she calls you buddy, pal, bro, or dude and you've never kissed, or held hands, or anything usually hidden by conventional clothing, you're in a zone clearly marked "Friends".
English. From the English nickname, meaning "friend" which could be from the Gaelic bhodaich, meaning "old man". Buddy Holly was an American musician and pioneer of Rock and Roll.
A buddy is a good friend. Your best buddy in elementary school may still be a good buddy when you graduate from high school. If you love to hang out with a certain friend, she's your buddy. You could also call her your pal or your chum.