Only in the mating season

Macho means male and Spanish men of a certain age still use it to address friends in the same way that English-speakers of a certain age use mate or, even further back, cock (in the most innocent sense of this versatile word).  So although ¿cómo va, macho? is close to how’s it going, mate? it would once have been even closer to wotcher, cock.  

 



Un gato macho



Macho is simply the male of any species – un gato macho, for instance - and although it can signify any type of cock bird, a cock or rooster is specifically un gallo. 

 

In any case macho has fallen into disuse amongst the young who now tend to address each other as tío (literally uncle), with girls favouring tía where they would once have chosen a demure chica (girl) or mujer (woman).

Macho entered the English language on its own merits, so much so that it used to describe any stereotypically, aggressively or excessively masculine male.  The originally Spanish machismo is unchanged in English and it now means chauvinistic in both languages, although countless Spanish males are less bothered about its implications than their counterparts elsewhere.

A mate still means friend or companion amongst English-speaking males and is un amigo, un compañero or un colega amongst Spanish males.  The type of mate who accompanied a plumber in pre-crisis times is un ayudante while a flatmate is un compañero de piso.  

For chess players, checkmate is the not dissimilar jaque mate which is unsurprising because both derive from the original Persian term, shab mat, meaning “the king has died.”

A mate or partner is pareja although it was automatically assumed in the past that a mate or sexual partner would also be a lawfully wedded marido or mujer.  While still used, along with the more genteel esposo or esposa many prefer the noncommittal pareja (which also means a couple) now that Spanish society has changed so radically - as, too, have couples.

Coupling is aparear when a verb and apareamiento as a noun, although the associations of both are more zoological than anthropological.  References to the mating season does not raise the merest laugh in Spanish but is the austerely serious época de celo of wildlife or cattle.  And probably it only complicates matters to mention that that celo is understood by European Spanish-speakers to be Sellotape.