for a drink' and 'infusion of an herb', as well as 'gourd'. The word mate is used in modern Portuguese and Spanish.

The pronunciation of yerba mate in Spanish is , with the stress on the first syllable of mate. The word yerba is Spanish for 'herb', a variant spelling of hierba used throughout Latin America. Yerba may be understood as 'herb', but also as 'grass' or 'weed'. It may also be used in reference to marijuana (Cannabis sativa). In Argentina, yerba refers exclusively