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squat

[skwot]
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verb (used without object), squat·ted or squat, squat·ting.
  1. to sit in a low or crouching position with the legs drawn up closely beneath or in front of the body; sit on one's haunches or heels.
  2. to crouch down or cower, as an animal.
  3. to settle on or occupy property, especially otherwise unoccupied property, without any title, right, or payment of rent.
  4. to settle on public land under government regulation, in order to acquire title.
  5. Nautical. (of a vessel, especially a power vessel) to draw more water astern when in motion forward than when at rest.
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verb (used with object), squat·ted or squat, squat·ting.
  1. to cause to squat.
  2. to occupy (property) as a squatter.
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adjective, squat·ter, squat·test.
  1. (of a person, animal, the body, etc.) short and thickset.
  2. low and thick or broad: The building had a squat shape.
  3. seated or being in a squatting position; crouching.
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noun
  1. the act or fact of squatting.
  2. a squatting position or posture.
  3. a weightlifting exercise in which a person squats and then returns to an erect position while holding a barbell at the back of the shoulders.
  4. Nautical. the tendency of a vessel to draw more water astern when in motion than when stationary.
  5. Slang. doodly-squat.
  6. a place occupied by squatters.
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Origin of squat

1250–1300; (v.) Middle English squatten < Old French esquater, esquatir, equivalent to es- ex-1 + quatir < Vulgar Latin *coactīre to compress, equivalent to Latin coāct(us), past participle of cōgere to compress (co- co- + ag(ere) to drive + -tus past participle suffix) + -īre infinitive suffix; (noun) Middle English, derivative of the v.; (adj.) Middle English: in a squatting position, orig., past participle of the v.
Related formssquat·ly, adverbsquat·ness, noun

Synonyms

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8. dumpy, stocky, square.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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British Dictionary definitions for squat

squat

verb squats, squatting or squatted (intr)
  1. to rest in a crouching position with the knees bent and the weight on the feet
  2. to crouch down, esp in order to hide
  3. law (tr) to occupy land or property to which the occupant has no legal title
  4. weightlifting to crouch down to one's knees and rise to a standing position while holding (a specified weight) behind one's neck
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adjective
  1. Also: squatty (ˈskwɒtɪ) short and broada squat chair
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noun
  1. a squatting position
  2. weightlifting an exercise in which a person crouches down and rises up repeatedly while holding a barbell at shoulder height
  3. a house occupied by squatters
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Derived Formssquatly, adverbsquatness, noun

Word Origin

C13: from Old French esquater, from es- ex- 1 + catir to press together, from Vulgar Latin coactīre (unattested), from Latin cōgere to compress, from co- + agere to drive
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

Word Origin and History for squat

v.

early 15c., "crouch on the heels," from Old French esquatir "press down, lay flat, crush," from es- "out" (from Latin ex-) + Old French quatir "press down, flatten," from Vulgar Latin *coactire "press together, force," from Latin coactus, past participle of cogere "to compel, curdle, collect" (see cogent). Related: Squatted; squatting. Slang noun sense of "nothing at all" first attested 1934, probably suggestive of squatting to defecate. The adjective sense of "short, thick" dates from 1620s.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper