A·te (??t?, ä?t?, ä?t?)n. Greek Mythology The goddess of criminal rashness and consequent punishment.[Greek ?t?, personification of ?t?, fault, error.]ate (?t)v.Past tense of eat.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.ate (?t; e?t) vb the past tense of eatAte (?e?t?; ???t?) n (Classical Myth & Legend) Greek myth a goddess who makes men blind so that they will blunder into guilty acts[C16: via Latin from Greek at? a rash impulse]Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014ate (e?t; Brit. ?t) v. pt. of eat. A?te (?e? ti, ?? ti) n. an ancient Greek goddess personifying the fatal blindness or recklessness that leads to ruinous actions. [