MALTESE

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does Maltese mean? 

• MALTESE (noun)
  The noun MALTESE has 4 senses:

1. a native or inhabitant of Malta

2. the national language of the Republic of Malta; a Semitic language derived from Arabic but with many loan words from Italian, Spanish, and Norman-French

3. a term applied indiscriminately in the United States to any short-haired bluish-grey cat

4. breed of toy dogs having a long straight silky white coat

  Familiarity information: MALTESE used as a noun is uncommon.

• MALTESE (adjective)
  The adjective MALTESE has 1 sense:

1. of or relating to the island or republic of Malta or its inhabitants

  Familiarity information: MALTESE used as an adjective is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• MALTESE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A native or inhabitant of Malta

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Hypernyms ("Maltese" is a kind of...):

European (a native or inhabitant of Europe)

Holonyms ("Maltese" is a member of...):

Malta; Republic of Malta (a republic on the island of Malta in the Mediterranean; achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1964)

Sense 2

Meaning:

The national language of the Republic of Malta; a Semitic language derived from Arabic but with many loan words from Italian, Spanish, and Norman-French

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

Maltese; Maltese language; Malti

Hypernyms ("Maltese" is a kind of...):

Semitic (a major branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A term applied indiscriminately in the United States to any short-haired bluish-grey cat

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

Maltese; Maltese cat

Hypernyms ("Maltese" is a kind of...):

domestic cat; Felis catus; Felis domesticus; house cat (any domesticated member of the genus Felis)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Breed of toy dogs having a long straight silky white coat

Classified under:

Nouns denoting animals

Synonyms:

Maltese; Maltese dog; Maltese terrier

Hypernyms ("Maltese" is a kind of...):

toy; toy dog (any of several breeds of very small dogs kept purely as pets)

• MALTESE (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Of or relating to the island or republic of Malta or its inhabitants

Classified under:

Relational adjectives (pertainyms)

Context example:

Maltese customs officers

Pertainym:

Malta (a strategically located island to the south of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea)

Malta (a republic on the island of Malta in the Mediterranean; achieved independence from the United Kingdom in 1964)