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# checkmate

noun (checkmate); verb (checkmate, checkmates, checkmated, checkmating); exclamation (Checkmate!)

«checkmate» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. In chess, checkmate is when a king is attacked and cannot escape, so the game ends and that player loses. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#m1)
2. To checkmate someone is to win a chess game by trapping their king. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#m2)
3. Checkmate can mean a situation where someone is completely beaten or stuck. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#m3)

### In the lessons

In chess club and games at home, a player says «Checkmate!» when they win. «Check» means the king is attacked but can still escape; «checkmate» means it cannot. In stories it can mean a final defeat in any contest or plan. Phrases: «in checkmate», «say checkmate», «checkmate in two moves».

### Examples

- She moved her queen and said, «Checkmate!» [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#x1)
- My king was in check, but not in checkmate. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#x2)
- Can you find checkmate in two moves? [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#x3)
- He checkmated me with just a rook and a king. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#x4)
- The game ended in checkmate after twenty moves. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#x5)
- Grandpa taught me how to checkmate with two rooks. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#x6)
- The detective's clever plan was checkmate for the thief. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#x7)
- It is not checkmate if the king can move to a safe square. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/#x8)

### Note

Written as one word. «Check» ≠ «checkmate»: in check you must get out of danger; checkmate ends the game. Stalemate is different: the player cannot move but is not in check, and the game is a draw. In UK English «check» in chess is still spelt «check», not «cheque».

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «checkmate» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/checkmate/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«checkmate» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/checkmate.html) on Mova free.