pâté, pate

Pâté or pâté ( pronounced pah tay ) is a French word that means food made into a paste--
We started with pâté, then we had soup, then a roast.
Many people refuse to eat pâté made from goose liver.

Pate or pate ( rhymes with "ate" ) is an old-fashioned word for "head" or "brain"--
He took a nasty knock on his pate, but he seems okay.
His old pate seemed too rusty to figure out what was going on.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"He slipped, and his pate hit the tray of  pâté the waiter was holding."

Note--"pâte" ( rhymes with "pat" ) is a French word, meaning paste or dough--
We will fill the cream puffs with pâte, and top them with chocolate shavings.

Note# 2--"patty", in American cooking, means something made into a flat, usually round shape--
If you put a beef patty on the grill, it will cook in about five minutes.