hat trick

[hat trik]

noun

1. Cricket.,  the knocking off by one bowler of three wickets with three successive pitches.

2. Ice Hockey, Soccer.,  three goals scored by one player in one game.

   He was the only athlete in our school’s history to achieve a hat trick in both hockey and soccer.

3. Baseball.,  three like feats executed by one player in one game, especially three home runs.

   In last night’s game, Marley performed a most unusual hat trick, with his three unassisted double plays.

4. a series of three related successes or accomplishments, especially when achieved one after the other and in close proximity.

   Once again, Kay won the blue ribbons for dill pickles, bread-and-butter pickles, and pickled beets—her annual pickle hat trick!

hat-trick

noun

1. cricket the achievement of a bowler in taking three wickets with three successive balls

2. any achievement of three points, victories, awards, etc within a given period, esp three goals scored by the same player in a soccer match

hat trick

1. In some sports, such as ice hockey, three goals by one player in a single game: “Lemieux scores for the third time tonight; he finally has the hat trick he's been looking for all season.”

The phrase originally referred to a hat traditionally given to a cricket player who scored three wickets, or goals.

By extension, a hat trick is an outstanding performance by an individual, or a particularly clever or adroit maneuver: “She pulled off a hat trick with her presentation to the committee.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of hat trick¹

First recorded in 1865–70; so called because formerly such a cricket bowler was rewarded with a hat

Idioms and Phrases

An extremely clever or adroit maneuver, as in It looked as though the party was going to achieve a hat trick in this election. The term originated in cricket, where it refers to three wickets taken by a bowler in three consecutive balls, traditionally rewarded with the presentation of a hat. It later was transferred to ice hockey, soccer, and baseball, where it denotes three consecutive successes (goals, hits), and then to more general use.