hat
Americannoun
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hats
plural
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a shaped covering for the head, usually with a crown and brim, especially for wear outdoors.
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Roman Catholic Church.
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the distinctive head covering of a cardinal.
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the office or dignity of a cardinal.
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verb (used with object)
idioms
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wear two / several hats, to function in more than one capacity; fill two or more positions.
He wears two hats, serving as the company's comptroller as well as its chief executive officer.
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take off one's hat to, to express high regard for; praise.
We took off our hats to their courage and daring.
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talk through one's hat, to speak without knowing the facts; make unsupported or incorrect statements.
He is talking through his hat when he says he'll make the team.
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throw / toss one's hat in the ring, to become a participant in a contest, especially to declare one's candidacy for political office.
His friends are urging him to throw his hat in the ring.
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under one's hat, confidential; private; secret.
I'll tell you the real story, but keep it under your hat.
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hat in hand, humbly; respectfully.
He approached the boss, hat in hand.
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pass the hat, to ask for contributions of money, as for charity; take up a collection.
The lodge members passed the hat to send underprivileged children to summer camp.
noun
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any of various head coverings, esp one with a brim and a shaped crown
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( in combination )
hatrack
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informal a role or capacity
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without hesitation or delay
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informal I will be greatly surprised if (something that proves me wrong) happens
I'll eat my hat if this book comes out late
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humbly or servilely
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to keep something secret
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informal (interjection)
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my word! my goodness!
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nonsense!
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something stale or old-fashioned
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as if by magic
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at random
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to collect money, as for a cause
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to admire or congratulate
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to talk foolishly
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to deceive or bluff
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to give up all hope of getting or achieving something
you can throw your hat at it now
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to announce one's intentions to be a candidate or contestant
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of hat
before 900; Middle English; Old English hætt; cognate with Old Norse hǫttr hood; akin to hood 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He’s got sheep on his knit hat, and he’s a sheep at heart.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
Whether or not you choose to buy your next shirt or hat from a tech or defence firm, Vignali argues that all clothing choices are loaded with meaning.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
In 2023, researchers discovered the first such monotile, the Smith hat.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 15, 2026
But from another point of view, this is all old hat.
From Slate ● Sep. 15, 2026
It looked to be quite a good hat, with grapes on it, better than the one that got busted up in the accident.
From "The Teacher’s Funeral" by Richard Peck
Walters gave him a box filled with handmade items, including piles of mittens, hats, and other items he’d crocheted for children; Collins dropped the box off with a church deacon.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Not far from the cafe where Osborn met with voters, Calvin Pemberton owns a Trump souvenir shop next to his car detailing business, where he sells flags, t-shirts and hats with the Republican president's likeness.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
Early-morning pilgrims had arrived by foot or car, some in traditional white smocks and thatched hats, carrying wooden staves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
Anaheimers donned Halos jerseys and hats like never before.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026
They grabbed hard hats and scrambled under desks to wait it out.
From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland
“My absolute favorite is Ca Com, the banh mi shop from the Anchovy team. They break down whole pigs in their hatted kitchen next door to make the jungle sausage in my favorite order.”
From Salon ● Apr. 24, 2025
I wish we had a better shot of the gloriously hatted cast of “The Gilded Age,” but one must play the hand one is dealt.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 5, 2023
Otherwise he doesn't remember much, "except that she was small, pleated skirt, hatted, didn't say much".
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2022
To honor Shaffer’s continued volunteer efforts, staff at the hospital decided to create a photo album for her, filled with images of hatted infants.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 2, 2021
She is hatted and scarved and mittened up tightly, unwrapping herself like a mummy as she finds her seat.
From "All The Bright Places" by Jennifer Niven
And all the 35 EA-6B flyers interviewed said they had never heard of anyone flying too low, too fast or doing improper stunts--what Marine pilots call "flat hatting."
From Time Magazine Archive
Officials also point out that another EA-6B squadron in Italy last year apparently videotaped some of its own flat hatting.
From Time Magazine Archive
Who's looked death in the face many a time without hatting an eye.
From Time Magazine Archive
He gave up hatting and she abandoned vests.
From Fifth Avenue by Arthur Bartlett Maurice
I was staying there; I went there upon the occasion of my leaving my house, No. 39, Little Queen-street, Holborn, where I had carried on the hatting business.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
