Showing results for "bat"

• a variation of batt.

Jump To:

• bat
  bat
• bat.
  bat.

  abbreviation

  battalion.

bat

¹ American  

[bat] / bæt /

noun

1. Sports.

   1. the wooden club used in certain games, as baseball and cricket, to strike the ball.

   2. a racket, especially one used in badminton or table tennis.

   3. a whip used by a jockey.

   4. the act of using a club or racket in a game.

   5. the right or turn to use a club or racket.

2. a heavy stick, club, or cudgel.

3. Informal. a blow, as with a bat.

4. any fragment of brick or hardened clay.

5. Masonry. a brick cut transversely so as to leave one end whole.

6. British Slang. speed; rate of motion or progress, especially the pace of the stroke or step of a race.

7. Slang. a spree; binge.

   to go on a bat.

8. Ceramics.

   1. a sheet of gelatin or glue used in bat printing.

   2. a slab of moist clay.

   3. a ledge or shelf in a kiln.

   4. a slab of plaster for holding a piece being modeled or for absorbing excess water from slip.

9. batt.

---

verb (used with object)

batted, batting

1. to strike or hit with or as if with a bat or club.

   Synonyms:

   clobber, clout, slug, sock, smack, swat, wallop, knock

2. Baseball. to have a batting average of; hit.

   He batted .325 in spring training.

verb (used without object)

batted, batting

1. Sports.

   1. to strike at the ball with the bat.

   2. to take one's turn as a batter.

verb phrase

1. bat around

   1. Slang. to roam; drift.

   2. Informal. to discuss or ponder; debate.

      We batted the idea around.

   3. Baseball. to have every player in the lineup take a turn at bat during a single inning.

2. bat in to cause (a run) to be scored by getting a hit.

   He batted in two runs with a double to left.

3. bat out to do, write, produce, etc., hurriedly.

   I have to bat out a term paper before class.

idioms

1. at bat, see at bat.

2. go to bat for, to intercede for; vouch for; defend.

   to go to bat for a friend.

3. bat the breeze. breeze.

4. right off the bat, at once; without delay.

   They asked me to sing right off the bat.

bat ² American  

[bat] / bæt /

noun

1. any of numerous flying mammals of the order Chiroptera, of worldwide distribution in tropical and temperate regions, having modified forelimbs that serve as wings and are covered with a membranous skin extending to the hind limbs.

---

idioms

1. blind as a bat, nearly or completely blind; having very poor vision.

   Anyone can tell that he's blind as a bat, but he won't wear glasses.

2. have bats in one's belfry, to have crazy ideas; be very peculiar, erratic, or foolish.

   If you think you can row across the ocean in that boat, you have bats in your belfry.

bat ³ American  

[bat] / bæt /

verb (used with object)

batted, batting

1. to flutter; blink; wink.

---

idioms

1. not bat an eye, to show no emotion or surprise; maintain a calm exterior.

   The murderer didn't bat an eye when the jury announced its verdict of guilty.

bat. ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. battalion.

2. battery.

---

bat ¹ British  

/ bæt /

noun

1. any of various types of club with a handle, used to hit the ball in certain sports, such as cricket, baseball, or table tennis

2. a flat round club with a short handle, resembling a table-tennis bat, used by a man on the ground to guide the pilot of an aircraft when taxiing

3. cricket short for batsman

4. any stout stick, esp a wooden one

5. informal a blow from such a stick

6. a small board used for tossing the coins in the game of two-up

7. slang a drinking spree; binge

8. slang speed; rate; pace

   they went at a fair bat

9. another word for batting

10. cricket (of an opening batsman) to reach the end of an innings without being dismissed

11. 1. of one's own accord; without being prompted by someone else

    2. by one's own unaided efforts

12. informal immediately; without hesitation

---

verb

1. (tr) to strike with or as if with a bat

2. (intr) sport (of a player or a team) to take a turn at batting

bat ² British  

/ bæt /

noun

1. any placental mammal of the order Chiroptera , being a nocturnal mouselike animal flying with a pair of membranous wings (patagia). The group is divided into the Megachiroptera ( fruit bats ) and Microchiroptera ( insectivorous bats )

2. slang an irritating or eccentric woman (esp in the phrase old bat )

3. having extremely poor eyesight

4. informal to be mad or eccentric; have strange ideas

5. slang very quickly

---

bat ³ British  

/ bæt /

verb

1. to wink or flutter (one's eyelids)

2. informal to show no surprise or concern

---

bat More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing bat

• at bat
• bats in one's belfry
• blind as a bat
• go to bat for
• like a bat out of hell
• right off the bat

---

Other Word Forms

• batlike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of bat¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English noun bat, bot, batte, Old English batt, perhaps from Celtic; compare Irish, Scots Gaelic bat, bata “staff, cudgel”; Middle English verb batten, partly from the noun, partly from Old French batre; see batter ¹

Origin of bat²

First recorded in 1570–75; apparently from Scandinavian; compare dialectal Swedish natt-batta, variant of Old Swedish natt-bakka “night-bat”; replacing Middle English bakke, bak (from Scandinavian), Middle English balke for unrecorded blake, from Scandinavian; compare dialectal Swedish natt-blacka, Old Icelandic ledhr-blaka “bat,” equivalent to ledhr “skin, leather” + blaka “flutter”

Origin of bat³

An Americanism dating back to 1835–40, extended sense of earlier “flutter like a hawk” first recorded in 1605–15; variant of see origin at bate ²

Explanation

A bat is used in the sports of baseball and cricket to hit a small, hard ball. In baseball, a bat can be made out of wood or aluminum. Bat can be a verb as well: when you're up at bat in a baseball game, it means it's your turn to bat with the bat. There is also an animal called a bat, a small, nocturnal bird-like mammal. People can be said to "bat their eyelashes," or flutter them flirtatiously, as well. This last meaning, from the mid-1800s, comes from an earlier sense of bat, "flutter like a hawk's wings."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bat bat. batted batting

Bauers, with 26 home runs and 83 RBIs, has been a key bat for Milwaukee.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026

"I used to love watching him bat when I was younger," said Brook, external - then little more than a year into his international career.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

One man was spotted riding his cricket bat like a hobby horse toward the dunes, slapping his backside in the breeze.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

The crack of the bat echoed the thunder that had been rumbling outside of the roofed ballpark for much of the afternoon.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026

Mustafa has a cricket bat in his luggage, which meant giving away half the clothes he brought with him to make room for it.

From "Amina's Song" by Hena Khan

“Every at-bat’s important. He’s still swinging a hot bat. It absolutely carries over.”

From Los Angeles Times ● May 10, 2026

“He’s a transformational bat. He’s one of the best hitters in the game. So he’s impact, period,” Cashman said.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 5, 2023

“So all the boys who were here the first year, the first game you’re not winning it right off the bat. You’ve got to keep pushing.”

From Washington Times ● Jun. 4, 2023

"It's the hardest time to bat. We wanted to bowl under lights and it panned out quite well," said Brook.

From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2023

“You just mention ten objects, and I’ll memorize them right off the bat. You give me one, Miss Truman, and then you give me one, Mr.—?”

From "The Pigman" by Paul Zindel

De Paula batted No. 7 and worked full counts in his first two at-bats.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026

It looked like being a similar outcome as they meekly surrendered the first set against Chan and Joint, then batted off four break points in the fifth and seventh games of the second set.

From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026

He batted against Hall-of-Famers, frequently slammed face-first into outfield fences and experienced the pressure cooker of the postseason.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

Apart from one wild slog early in his innings, McKinney batted with a classical elegance while Rhodes was content to play the supporting role in a stand which stretched Durham's lead towards 300.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

“Easy,” said Malcolm, and while Asta playfully batted the kitten over and over, he reached in and picked the baby up.

From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman

One acquaintance remembers Coxon batting around different career paths as he searched for ways to optimize his life trajectory.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

Bradley took him to the batting cages to administer the eye test.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

Edman’s effectiveness evokes memories of Maury Wills batting first for successful 1960s Dodgers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026

There’s no reason the productive, switch-hitting Tommy Edman should not lead off, with Shohei Ohtani batting second.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026

He had a knack for fielding and batting, but although he was fast, he wasn’t a particularly coordinated runner on the bases.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

Related Words

• sock