# When did mentee become a word? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 24, 2014, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452 "2014-11-24T00:38:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/1 "2014-11-24T00:38:27Z")
Def: the person being mentored by a mentor. I just heard it used on NPR, non-ironically…which prompted some questions: It’s not in my OED. I think I first heard it on 30 Rock, but I assumed it was a joke. 🙂 Is a “mentee” any different from a “protege”? (I tried to think of legitimate -or/-ee pairings, and couldn’t come up with any. I know they’re out there but I’m just drawing a blank.) [pedant]“Mentor” is a particularly bad candidate for back-formation, spawning “mentee”, because it started as a proper name – the name of Odysseus’ son’s tutor in The Odyssey. That it ends in -or leads to the whole false etymology thing.[/pedant] ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/2 "2014-11-24T00:45:04Z")
If mentee is a word, is advisee also a word? I’m an advisor (or is that adviser?) for college students, but the spell-checker here doesn’t recognize it. The M&W online dictionary shows mentee was first used 1965 (advisee is 1824). I think both sound weird. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/3 "2014-11-24T02:43:06Z")
NSFW joke: Two newly-minted lawyers are at the sports bar, shooting the breeze and bragging about their cases. Lawyer #1: I’m working on a rape case now. Lawyer #2:So, are you representing the fuckor or the fuckee? ---
**Author:** ![SuperAbe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@SuperAbe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuperAbe)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/4 "2014-11-24T03:03:16Z")
Both _mentee_ and _advisee_ have been in common use from the world of academia for at least 20 years (source: personal communication 😛 ) Merriam-Webster claims _mentee_ is a more recent arrival ([1965](http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mentee); though this is [contested](http://www.cjr.org/language_corner/mentee_fresh.php)) - and [others have noted the odd backformation from the proper name Mentor](http://katherinebarber.blogspot.com/2011/05/if-im-your-mentor-are-you-my-mentee.html), [too](http://wordswordswords.info/2011/03/08/grow-a-spine/). _Advisee_ is almost [200 years old](http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/advisee). ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/5 "2014-11-24T03:18:17Z")
Back in 1995 I was one of my company’s designated mentors. In a meeting, one of us refered to our minions as “mentees.” “Protege,” I insisted. I was outvoted. ---
**Author:** ![Namkcalb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Namkcalb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Namkcalb)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/6 "2014-11-24T03:54:38Z")
Do you mean Manatee? (aka sea cow) ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/7 "2014-11-24T04:07:42Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > Back in 1995 I was one of my company’s designated mentors. In a meeting, one of us refered to our minions as “mentees.” > > “Protege,” I insisted. I was outvoted. Around the same time I raised the same objection. I was chided by my boss for being too “pederastic”. I assumed he meant pedantic, but couldn’t figure out a way to get out of that without making things worse. I was working with a bunch of very successful but not very literate people at the time. Later I discovered their success was largely due to their willingness to break rules far more important than ones of language. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/8 "2014-11-24T04:18:02Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Around the same time I raised the same objection. I was chided by my boss for being too “pederastic”. I assumed he meant pedantic, but \*\*couldn’t figure out a way to get out of that without making things worse. \*\* For some reason that’s one of the funniest things I’ve read in a while. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/9 "2014-11-24T11:08:49Z")
If people don’t want to use the word “protege,” they should be given a choice of either “Telemachus” or “Billy Batson.” “Mentee” is just stupid. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/10 "2014-11-24T12:15:26Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Around the same time I raised the same objection. I was chided by my boss for being too “pederastic”. . . O.M. f’ing. G. I would have been laughing for hours. I see no reason to assume a false etymology.If you google for advice about naming fictional characters you’ll be hard pressed to find a list which doesn’t prioritize the meaning of the name. Homer spoke Latin, he needed to name a character who was a tutor. So he chose a root meaning and added “-or” to save himself some exposition. Lord knows he had a serious length problem to contend with. His result was so appropriate that we adopted it as the term for that role. So why should it be out of bounds for us to extrapolate the form to define the relationship? Most people find “protege” to be needlessly condescending. It brings up unfortunate connotations of “Golden Age” Hollywood producers and their companions for whom “ingenue” or simply “clueless mistress” would have been more accurate. “Protege” was the polite euphemism. So for women being mentored by men, this term is especially disquieting. “Mentee” is awkward, but I think its the best we’ve got for the moment. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/11 "2014-11-24T12:25:34Z")
Given that Homer spoke Greek, I think I’m going to withhold any endorsement of your post as a whole, at least for the moment. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/12 "2014-11-24T14:34:05Z")
According to our friends at Merriam Webster… > [@](#): > > Origin of MENTEE > > mentor + -ee > First Known Use: 1965 although I do have to question that pronunciation… “mentor-ee?” ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/13 "2014-11-24T15:11:17Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Given that Homer spoke Greek, I think I’m going to withhold any endorsement of your post as a whole, at least for the moment. :smack: Thank you. I’ll go get another cup of coffee now. But still . . . I think the point is a good one. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/14 "2014-11-24T16:12:12Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > NSFW joke: > > Two newly-minted lawyers are at the sports bar, shooting the breeze and bragging about their cases. > > Lawyer #1: I’m working on a rape case now. > > Lawyer #2:So, are you representing the fuckor or the fuckee? Actually, a more experienced lawyer would acknowledge that before a conviction, the physical act of fucking and the required mental elements that must be associated with it for the fucking to constitute the offence of rape have not, at that time, been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, and so they should have called them the alleged fuckor and the alleged fuckee. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/15 "2014-11-24T16:15:39Z")
Can’t pretty much any word be coined by adding -ee to mean ‘a person who is the direct object of some action’? We create neologisms all the time that aren’t in the dictionary. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/16 "2014-11-24T16:57:10Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > According to our friends at Merriam Webster… > although I do have to question that pronunciation… “mentor-ee?” That’s not the pronunciation, that’s the etymology. They’re saying the word was created by adding “-ee” to “mentor”. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2014, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/17 "2014-11-24T16:58:53Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > Homer… needed to name a character who was a tutor. So he chose a root meaning and added “-or” to save himself some exposition. Lord knows he had a serious length problem to contend with. So you’re saying he basically created a character named Teachor? What a hack. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/18 "2014-11-25T01:54:58Z")
A mentee sounds like an escapee from the booby hatchery. ---
**Author:** ![shiftless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@shiftless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shiftless)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/19 "2014-11-25T17:31:42Z")
I’ve been hearing it for years. Can’t help mentally adding the word ‘fresh’ every time I hear it: ‘Mentee fresh.’ ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2014, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452/20 "2014-11-25T22:43:04Z")
> [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](#): > > Can’t pretty much any word be coined by adding -ee to mean ‘a person who is the direct object of some action’? We create neologisms all the time that aren’t in the dictionary. This is pretty much my take on it. While there are classic examples of -ee and -or words that everyone uses in speech, I could create a new one using those endings with a meaning that people would pretty much understand without a formal definition. If I say “taxor” and “taxee” you know what I mean. As for mentee specifically… I’m not sure any other words mean exactly the same thing to me. Protege was suggested, but to me a protege is as much about the prestige and influence of the mentor - like the Hollywood producer who helps a favored actor get good roles. When I think mentor/mentee, I’m thinking more about a coaching or educational relationship. Maybe this is the kind of language drift where protege used to mean something different and now we need a new word for the old meaning? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/when-did-mentee-become-a-word/705452.md?page=2)