bat Hear it!

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bat1 definition

bat (bat)

noun

  1. any stout club, stick, or cudgel
  2. a club used to strike the ball in baseball and cricket
  3. a ping-pong paddle, squash racket, etc.
  4. ☆ a turn at batting, as in baseball
    see also at-bat
  5. Brit. a batsman at cricket
  6. cotton batting, esp. of an inferior quality; batt
  7. the whip used by a jockey
  8. Informal a blow or hit
  9. ☆ Slang a drinking bout; spree
  10. Brit., Informal fast pace; speed
  11. Ceramics a plaster disk on which the clay is based in modeling

Etymology: ME < OE batt, cudgel (prob. < Welsh bat < IE base *bhat-, to strike) & < OFr batte, pestle < battre, batter

transitive verb batted bat′·ted, batting bat′·ting

  1. to strike with or as with a bat
  2. to have a batting average of

intransitive verb

  1. to use a bat to bat left-handed
  2. to take a turn at batting to bat third in the lineup
bat Idioms

at bat

☆
Baseball taking a turn at batting

bat around

☆ Slang
  1. to travel or roam about
  2. to consider or discuss (an idea, plan, etc.) freely and informally
  3. Baseball to have all the batters in the lineup come to bat in a single inning

bat out

☆
Slang to create or compose quickly or hastily

go to bat for

☆
Informal to intervene on behalf of; defend

(right) off the bat

☆
Informal immediately
bat2 definition

bat (bat)

noun

any of an order (Chiroptera) of furry, nocturnal flying mammals having membranous wings and navigating by echolocation; chiropter: various bats feed on insects, nectar, fruit, flesh, or blood

Etymology: altered < ME bakke < Scand, as in OSwed backa

bat Idioms

blind as a bat

quite blind

have bats in the belfry

or have bats in one's belfry☆
Slang to be insane; have crazy notions
bat3 definition

bat (bat)

transitive verb batted bat′·ted, batting bat′·ting

Informal to wink; blink; flutter

Etymology: ME baten, to flap (wings) < OFr battre, batter

bat Idioms

not bat an eye

or not bat an eyelash☆
Informal not show surprise

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms bat idiom

bat Synonyms

bat

n.

  1. A club, especially one used in sports

    ball bat, baseball bat, cricket bat, stick, club, racket, pole, mallet.

  2. *A blow

    hit, rap, knock; see blow 1.

  3. A turn at batting

    inning, round, trip to the plate, up, turn.

blind as a bat*

sightless, unseeing, blinded; see blind 1.

go to bat for*

intervene for, support, stand by, back up; see defend 3.

have bats in one's belfry*

be crazy, be mad, be eccentric, be peculiar, be out of one's mind, have a screw loose*; see also insane 1.

not bat an eye<strong> <em>or</em> </strong>eyelash*

not be surprised or shocked or amazed, ignore, remain unruffled, show no surprise, not turn a hair*, keep one's cool*; see also neglect 1.

(right) off the bat*

at once, without delay, instantly; see immediately.


bat

v.

strike, hit, whack, sock*; see hit 1.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

bat Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • hibernate: Can put grills on cave entrances to prevent interference to hibernating bats.

Adjective modifier

  • long-eared: Can also be distinguished from the brown long-eared bat by the length of the thumb.

Modifies a noun

  • roost: Mature trees, which are to be removed, should be inspected to whether they form bat roosts.

Noun used with modifier

  • horseshoe: Methods Samples of DNA were collected under license from English Nature from greater horseshoe bats in Dorset during 2005.
bat usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

bat quotes

The Master: records prove the title good: Yet figures fail you, for they cannot say How many men whose names you never knew Are proud to tell their sons they saw you play. They share the sunlight of your summer day Of thirty years; and they, with you, recall How, through those well-wrought centuries, your hand Reshaped the history of bat and ball.

-Aristotle

It's hard to bat with tears in your eyes.

-Bradman, Sir Don(ald George)

Twinkle, twinkle, little bat! How I wonder what you're at! Up above the world you fly! Like a teatray in the sky.

-Dodgson

bat quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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"bat." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/bat>

APA Style

bat. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/bat

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