slat
1 Americannoun
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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.
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Aeronautics. a control surface along the leading edge of a wing that can be extended forward to create a gap slot to improve airflow.
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Slang. slats,
verb (used with object)
verb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
noun
noun
-
a narrow thin strip of wood or metal, as used in a Venetian blind, etc
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a movable or fixed auxiliary aerofoil attached to the leading edge of an aircraft wing to increase lift, esp during landing and takeoff
verb
verb
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(tr) to throw violently; fling carelessly
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(intr) to flap violently
noun
noun
Etymology
Origin of slat1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English sclat, slat(te “a roofing tile, slate,” from Middle French esclat “splinter, chip”; see origin at éclat
Origin of slat2
First recorded in 1200–50; of obscure origin; possibly from Old Norse sletta “to slap, splash”
Explanation
A slat is a strip of wood or other thin material. The blinds that cover your windows are made up of slats. The horizontal slats in Persian or Venetian blinds are often made of plastic, fabric, or metal, and they can be adjusted to let light in or shut it out completely. Some wooden fences are made of slats as well, and bed frames often have slats that support the mattress placed on top of them. Slat was originally sclat, from the Old French esclat, "split, chip, or piece."
Vocabulary lists containing slat
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Pride
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My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich
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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:
We love the island vibe and have added some cherrywood slat doors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
Season 3 ends with a small portion of its people reunited in a grandly staged gathering that holds the spiritual punch of bolting one more slat into place along that franchise bridge.
From Salon ● Apr. 21, 2023
He had the slat fence removed and reconfigured it, turning it into supports for paintings.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2023
Some stores offer lifetime guarantees, meaning they’ll send someone out to fix a broken blind slat, replace a malfunctioning motor or untangle cords.
From Washington Post ● May 25, 2022
John tended the fire with a broken slat he’d pulled from the dune fence.
From "Adrift" by Paul Griffin
A robot slurry scraper travels up and down the cowshed at regular intervals, pushing any manure through the slatted floor into the vast storage pit below.
From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2026
Through the slatted wall, volunteers provide them with clothes, medical supplies and snacks — even free WiFi and an electrical strip to charge their phones.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2024
People of this community manage their flow by situating themselves over a gap in the slatted floors of their homes, free-bleeding onto the lush forest greenery below.
From National Geographic ● Nov. 29, 2023
New schools were built with similar ignorance of daily realities in the region — with, for instance, air-conditioning hookups instead of traditional slatted window louvers.
From New York Times ● Jul. 7, 2023
There was a hammock made of barrel staves slatted into woven wires.
From "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner
The second race petered out in a slatting calm.
From Time Magazine Archive
Last week the biggest, most serious maritime strike in U. S. history ran through its second week with all three coasts fretted by waterfront squalls and with peace negotiations slatting dismally in the doldrums.
From Time Magazine Archive
Sitting at the table in the darkness, the moonlight slatting into the cabin through the small windows in bars of pale white, he hated himself more than all the rest.
From "The Voyage Of The Frog" by Gary Paulsen
She and Nat went to the window together and watched the rain slatting down in the weed-grown garden.
From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham
The wind took the Frog backward, but with the sails loose and slatting she moved so slowly that she was effectively still.
From "The Voyage Of The Frog" by Gary Paulsen
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.
