spat
1to engage in a petty quarrel or dispute.
to splash or spatter; rain spatting against the window.
Origin of spat
1Other words for spat
Other definitions for spat (2 of 4)
a simple past tense and past participle of spit1.
Other definitions for spat (3 of 4)
a short gaiter worn over the instep and usually fastened under the foot with a strap, worn especially in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Origin of spat
3Other definitions for spat (4 of 4)
the spawn of an oyster or similar shellfish.
young oysters collectively, especially seed oysters.
a young oyster.
Origin of spat
4Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use spat in a sentence
Its platform was revolving rapidly and the rifles of its crew were spatting viciously.
The Boy Chums in the Florida Jungle | Wilmer M. ElyHe put them down on the kitchen table and looked around, spatting his hands together briskly to rid them of dust.
Half Portions | Edna FerberBut the first rain drops were spatting among the leaves and Scout Master Newton raised his hand.
The Boy Scout Treasure Hunters | Charles Henry LerrigoThese impersonalities were as near "spatting" as Mr. and Mrs. Hodges ever got.
The Uncalled | Paul Laurence DunbarAbove the roar of wheels sounded spatting reports of rifles.
The U.P. Trail | Zane Grey
British Dictionary definitions for spat (1 of 4)
/ (spæt) /
rare a slap or smack
a slight quarrel
rare to slap (someone)
(intr) US, Canadian and NZ to have a slight quarrel
Origin of spat
1British Dictionary definitions for spat (2 of 4)
/ (spæt) /
a past tense and past participle of spit 1
British Dictionary definitions for spat (3 of 4)
/ (spæt) /
another name for gaiter (def. 2)
Origin of spat
3British Dictionary definitions for spat (4 of 4)
/ (spæt) /
a larval oyster or similar bivalve mollusc, esp when it settles to the sea bottom and starts to develop a shell
such oysters or other molluscs collectively
Origin of spat
4Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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