Painting - Flat or matte?

Is there a difference between flat and matte finish, or are they the same? I purchased 2 gallons of paint for family room and requested flat finish and I notice on the container it says matte finish. Am I being paranoid or what? I know nothing about paint and with all the new finishes I want to make sure I have a flat finish paint. Can someone help me? :confused:

A flat is/should be a dead flat.
A matte is like a flat in the way it applies and looks, but has an ever-so-slight sheen to it that makes it washable.

Although sheen levels vary from brand to brand, matte and flat are basically the same. The same is true of satin, eggshell and low lustre. I think different manufactures think their product sounds better if they use a different classification. :)

Marksr, I agree with you, but there is one product out there that is definately different. Duron's Velvet Flat, I swear it has more shine than most eggshell's.

Thanks for your guidance. I was getting a little freaky because one coat had already been applied and it seemed to look a slight different than most flats, but of course, I'm such a picky person I'm probably the only person that noticed it. I called the paint store and they told me different brands have different finish names. Don't understand why they do that--makes it too confusing to the layman. I guess I should be happy that it's somewhat washable since it's the family room we're painting and we're both smokers. Anyway, thanks again.