slat

[ slat ]

/ slæt /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR slat ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a long thin, narrow strip of wood, metal, etc., used as a support for a bed, as one of the horizontal laths of a Venetian blind, etc.

Aeronautics. a control surface along the leading edge of a wing that can be extended forward to create a gap (slot) to improve airflow.

slats, Slang.

the ribs.
the buttocks.
(initial capital letter) a nickname for a tall, slender man.

verb (used with object), slat·ted, slat·ting.

to furnish or make with slats

Words related to slat

wedge, bat, cane, bar, wand, club, rod, baton, stalk, strip, slab, panel, load, bulk, extent, supply, chunk, number, volume, lot

Words nearby slat

slashdot effect, slasher, slasher movie, slashfest, slashing, slat, slat back, slatch, slate, slate black, slate blue

Origin of slat

1350–1400; Middle English sclat, slatt a slate < Middle French esclat splinter, fragment; see éclat

Definition for slat (2 of 2)

slat²

[ slat ]

/ slæt /

Chiefly British Dialect

verb (used with object), slat·ted, slat·ting.

to throw or dash with force.

verb (used without object), slat·ted, slat·ting.

to flap violently, as sails.

noun

a slap; a sharp blow.

Origin of slat

First recorded in 1815–25, slat is from the Old Norse word sletta to splash, strike

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for slat

Noiselessly she rearranged a vase of flowers and closed the slat of a Venetian blind.
Ghost Beyond the Gate|Mildred A. Wirt
Will you be willin' to hang 'round with us till mornin', if I buy a slat of good things?
The Princess and Joe Potter|James Otis
A slat fence is more to be dreaded, on account of the ledge on the top of it formed by the binder.
How Women Should Ride|C. De Hurst
I suppose she's vast now, and glued to an upper window-ledge with her great eyes peering through a slat in the shutter.
Love and Lucy|Maurice Henry Hewlett

Bracing the slat with one shoulder, he worked the saw very slowly, so that the wood should not vibrate.
Up The Baltic|Oliver Optic

British Dictionary definitions for slat (1 of 3)

slat¹

/ (slæt) /

noun

a narrow thin strip of wood or metal, as used in a Venetian blind, etc

a movable or fixed auxiliary aerofoil attached to the leading edge of an aircraft wing to increase lift, esp during landing and takeoff

verb slats, slatting or slatted

(tr) to provide with slats

Word Origin for slat

C14: from Old French esclat splinter, from esclater to shatter

British Dictionary definitions for slat (2 of 3)

slat²

/ (slæt) dialect /

verb slats, slatting or slatted

(tr) to throw violently; fling carelessly

(intr) to flap violently

noun

a sudden blow

Word Origin for slat

C13: of Scandinavian origin; related to Old Norse, Icelandic sletta to slap

British Dictionary definitions for slat (3 of 3)

slat³

/ (slæt) /

noun

Irish a spent salmon

Word Origin for slat

C19: of uncertain origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012