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oat definition

oat (ōt)

noun

    1. a hardy, widely grown cereal grass (Avena sativa)
    2. the edible grain of this grass
  2. any of various related grasses (genus Avena), esp. the wild oats
  3. Obsolete a simple musical pipe made of an oat stalk

Etymology: ME ote < OE ate: not found in other Gmc languages: prob. < IE base *oid-, to swell > Russ jádrica, groats

oat Idioms

feel one's oats

☆ Slang
  1. to be in high spirits; be frisky
  2. to feel and act important

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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