Meaning of mate

[Klpno]

Hello everyone,

I'd like to ask about the meaning of "mate" in the following context:

The first relationship was in London in the seventeenth century where these two souls were also husband and wife. As now, he was an alcoholic then, and she was his mate. He tried to force her to become a prostitute in order to obtain money for alcohol. She refused to do this and left him, ending up homeless and living under a bridge. The river rose up in a flood and drowned her. When the husband heard of her death, he hung himself.

What does "mate" mean in this context?

The only thing that came across my mind is that "mate" here means something like friend/comrade (in the sense that she was trying to help him)...

[Cerberus™]

It most probably means girlfriend here, sexual partner; they didn't say "girlfriend" in those days. You know what mating season means? It is when animals make babies.

[Klpno]

Thank you very much, Cerberus.

[Hunny1]

"mate" means- a friend,that mean they didnt have sex. :D
Very often they use that world in greetings- Hi, mate! its informal, frendly. you can use it between friends and say it to a strange too. :lol:

[SkiIucK]

To mate, to couple.

[Cerberus™]