n. pl. Maltese 1. a. A native or inhabitant of Malta.
b. A person of Maltese ancestry.
2. The Semitic language of the people of Malta, which developed from the Arabic spoken by medieval Arabic-speaking settlers and contains many loanwords from Italian. Maltese and English are the official languages of Malta.
3. A dog of a toy breed having a long silky white coat. The breed was developed in the Mediterranean region and has long been associated with Malta.
4. A Maltese cat.