coat
Americannoun
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coats
plural
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an outer garment with sleeves, covering at least the upper part of the body.
a new fur coat; a coat for formal wear.
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a natural integument or covering, as the hair, fur, or wool of an animal, the bark of a tree, or the skin of a fruit.
-
a layer of anything that covers a surface.
That wall needs another coat of paint.
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a mucous layer covering or lining an organ or connected parts, as on the tongue.
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Archaic. a petticoat or skirt.
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Obsolete.
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a garment indicating profession, class, etc.
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the profession, class, etc., so indicated.
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verb (used with object)
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coats,
present (3rd person singular)
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coated,
past participle, past
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coating
present participle
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to cover with a layer or coating: The furniture was coated with dust.
He coated the wall with paint.
The furniture was coated with dust.
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to cover thickly, especially with a viscous fluid or substance.
Heat the mixture until it coats a spoon. The boy was coated with mud from head to foot.
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to cover or provide with a coat.
noun
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an outdoor garment with sleeves, covering the body from the shoulder to waist, knee, or foot
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any similar garment, esp one forming the top to a suit
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a layer that covers or conceals a surface
a coat of dust
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the hair, wool, or fur of an animal
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short for coat of arms
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in disfavour
verb
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to cover (with) a layer or covering
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(tr) to provide with a coat
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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coatsimple
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coatssimple
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have coatedperfect
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has coatedperfect
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am coatingprogressive
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are coatingprogressive
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is coatingprogressive
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have been coatingperfect progressive
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has been coatingperfect progressive
Past
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coatedsimple
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had coatedperfect
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was coatingprogressive
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were coatingprogressive
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had been coatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of coat
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English cote, from Anglo-French, Old French, from Germanic; compare German Kotze, Old Saxon cott “woolen coat”
Explanation
A coat is a warm piece of clothing you wear when it's cold outside. When the days get short and chilly, it's probably time to start wearing your puffy winter coat. A coat is a necessary garment during the winter in most parts of the world. You can also use the word to mean "layer," like when you paint your house, starting with a coat of primer. Another kind of coat is the one your dog, or any furry animal, has: "I brushed my cat's coat until it shone." Coat comes from the Old French cote, "tunic or overgarment," with its Turkish root kotta, "coarse cloth."
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:
"I’ve always felt supported from day one and it’s a story that keeps going," she told BFM TV, wearing black sunglasses and a beige trench coat.
From Barron's ● Aug. 28, 2026
WSJ | Buy Side: Buy Side staffers tested Quince’s 100% European linen button-up shirt, pull-on pants, a chore coat and more.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
The squat one-storey building has recently received a fresh coat of paint and looks respectable from a distance.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
Luxury brands such as these have certainly seen an increase in searches and sales, and a Prada coat worn by Bessette sold for $192,000 at auction while “Love Story” was airing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026
As Mutti and I took the strain on the rope, we could see Peter had grabbed Karli by the back of his coat and was trying to haul him out.
From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo
Gaggles of British tourists with fur coats and spray tans jostled for seating, clutching their outerwear to their chests for space as they scouted for a table to open up.
From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026
On the Northwest Coast of North America, for instance, some Indigenous communities bred small dogs with woolly coats specifically for their hair.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026
He remembers receiving one of the coats from the project.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Dust coats the staircases leading to the balcony, while rows of worn seats still face the stage beneath peeling painted ceilings and decorative plasterwork.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
Hastily we struggled into our coats and filed again through the cold corridors.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
"This tastes really sweet. It's almost like it's been coated in sugar," said Douyin influencer Liulianzi in a clip liked more than 17,000 times.
From Barron's ● Aug. 30, 2026
One trend centered on the “chamoy pickle”—a hollowed-out jumbo dill pickle typically filled with spicy chips or sour candy, coated with the Mexican condiment chamoy and wrapped in a Fruit Roll-Up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Shag carpet covered original terra-cotta floors, high-gloss paint coated nearly every wooden surface and overgrown weeds crowded the yard.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
Those gases are then analyzed and passed through specially coated capillary tubes.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
It’s coated with mashed mush but it’s okay!
From "Shine!" by J.J. and Chris Grabenstein
The stern and central section appear to have been covered with the same material, while researchers identified three distinct coating batches at the bow.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
The coating raised DNA cleavage efficiency from 36% without PEG to 92% with PEG at 37°C over 31 hours.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 19, 2026
“What did I get myself into?” he asked, finding kitchen equipment, furniture, clothes, bottles, a family picture, and wooden planks with nails pointing upward coating the floor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
Though he says you must keep them in a safe place to ensure the coating on the lenses isn't torn, worn or damaged, as that would make them unsafe to use again.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2026
Ifemelu had finished and Aunty Uju was coating an exfoliating mask on her face when The General called to say he could no longer come.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
