Key Difference: Buddy is an informal way to refer to a male friend. Mate is a friend or a companion used as a friendly form of address between men or boys.

People usually get confused about the usage of the words, buddy and mate. Both words are used to refer to a friend. A friend is someone who shares a deeper level of interaction or communication. Friends stand out in a group of people. Friends are someone with whom you are happy to spend time with doing absolutely nothing at all, someone who doesn't mind driving you on stupid errands; someone who tries to help you. A friend is someone who would never intentionally hurt you, lie to you, deceive you, manipulate you, abuse you and who takes great care to be kind to you.

Buddy is an informal way to refer to a male friend. It might refer to a best friend or in the American English, it is also applicable for mate. Buddy is sometimes used as a synonym for friend. It is also specifically denoted to a friend with whom one engages in a particular activity, such as study buddy, shopping buddy, movie buddy, etc. Anybody can have a buddy to do different kinds of activities. It is an informal word, but not slang.

There are different types of buddies:

• The Like-Minded Buddy – the buddies who feels very familiar and help each other with mutual and effective ways of dealing with issues.
• Dream Buddy – this buddy is someone who won’t laugh at you at your strange dreams.
• The Chalk and Cheese Buddy – this buddy appears to be the exact opposite of yourself. You tent to express the same emotion in different ways.
• The Significant other body – this buddy reminds you of a significant person in your life.
• The Shadow Buddy – this buddy represents parts of yourself you have judged and hidden.
• The Guardian Angel Buddy – you feel he is to be your angel; the person who will guide you through each and every moment of your life.

Mate is a friend or a companion used as a friendly form of address between men or boys. Mate is a synonym for friend. It is more popularly used in Australia rather than in other countries. Mate in other context is also used for a partner in marriage, or as a simple term for a sexual partner. Mate is also used for the animals, to pair for the purpose of breeding. Mate is basically a slang term dedicated to a friend in a formal or informal manner.

There are different types of mates:

• A soul mate friend is the best example for mate. Soul mates are the one who has shared a special bond of friendship and love with in many lifetimes. One feels complete, natural and instantly feels comfortable with him. They appear to be the opposite of yourself.
• Room mates - they are the ones who share a room with each other, and are very close.
• Team mates - these mates are there with you in each and every group.

One should not choose their mate by the money in their bank account, creed, color, caste, and ethnicity; instead choose character, action, heart and soul.

Comparison between Buddy and Mate:

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