squat

American  

[skwot] / skwɒt /

verb (used without object)

• squats,
  present (3rd person singular)
• squatted,
  past participle,  past
• squat,
  past participle,  past
• squatting
  present participle

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)

• squats,
  present (3rd person singular)
• squatted,
  past participle,  past
• squat,
  past participle,  past
• squatting
  present participle

1. to cause to squat.

2. to occupy (property) as a squatter.

adjective

squatter, squattest

1. (of a person, animal, the body, etc.) short and thickset.

   Synonyms:

   blocky, stocky, dumpy

2. low and thick or broad.

   The building had a squat shape.

3. seated or being in a squatting position; crouching.

noun

• squats
  plural

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. diddly-squat.

6. a place occupied by squatters.

squat British  

/ skwɒt /

verb

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.  short and broad

   a squat chair

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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• squatness
  noun
• squatly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• squats
  plural

Participles

• squatting
  present
• squat
  past
• squatted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• squat
  simple
• squats
  simple
• have squat
  perfect
• have squatted
  perfect
• has squat
  perfect
• has squatted
  perfect
• am squatting
  progressive
• are squatting
  progressive
• is squatting
  progressive
• have been squatting
  perfect progressive
• has been squatting
  perfect progressive

Past

• squat
  simple
• squatted
  simple
• had squat
  perfect
• had squatted
  perfect
• was squatting
  progressive
• were squatting
  progressive
• had been squatting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will squat
  simple
• will have squat
  perfect
• will have squatted
  perfect
• will be squatting
  progressive
• will have been squatting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of squat

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English (verb) squatten, from Old French esquater, esquatir, equivalent to es- + quatir, from unattested Vulgar Latin coactīre “to compress,” equivalent to Latin coāct(us), past participle of cōgere “to compress” ( co- + ag(ere) “to drive” + -tus past participle suffix) + -īre infinitive suffix; (noun) Middle English, derivative of the verb; see origin at ex- ¹, co-

Explanation

If you crouch down very low and sit on your heels, you squat. If you have to talk to a small child, you might have to squat to talk face-to-face. The verb squat also means to illegally occupy a building — especially to live in it. If you own vacant property, you need to be careful that someone doesn't decide to squat in the empty house. As an adjective, squat describes someone who is very short and thick. In the movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the dwarfs are depicted as squat little men.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

squat squats squatter squatted squatting

Many residents, like Villegas, squat close to destroyed homes, hopeful to be nearby when, and if, the remains of relatives are found.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

And if the moment calls, "pop a squat in the middle of the field".

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

A 640-pound squat by Hart nose tackle Gabe Degl’Innocenti.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 28, 2026

“I had to squat and kick my heels out, which, frankly, was not easy for me,” he said.

From Salon ● Mar. 19, 2026

On the other side of the river, tall modern buildings, with whole walls of windows, lifted up out above the squat brick constructions.

From "Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt

“I’m on a gym tour, baby! I wanna come to your gym. I wanna work out with you,” she said before launching into squats, push-ups and bicep curls.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026

Examples include chair squats, heel drops, and wall push-ups.

From Science Daily ● May 1, 2026

They use a "flywheel exercise device," similar to a yo-yo, that can allow for aerobics like rowing as well as provide resistance to perform moves like weighted squats and deadlifts.

From Barron's ● Apr. 4, 2026

Another wake-up app is Alarmy, which has its roughly 900,000 daily U.S. users complete “missions” such as doing squats, shaking their phone or typing out motivational quotes before it stops sounding.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 4, 2026

Alex explains the wisdom stuff to him, then squats to check out the canyon.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

Patent and Trademark Office, Tesla described its adversary as “a bad-faith trademark squatter, who started as a Tesla fan,” and described the French company’s attempt to trademark the Cybercab moniker as fraudulent.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 16, 2026

Animal control officers from Pasadena Humane confirmed that a bear was living under an Altadena house Sunday but could not be sure if the latest bear squatter was the same bruin from the earlier incident.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2026

“At least I eat sometimes,” said Cedric Mnisi, 39, who lives in a squatter camp nearby.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2025

This was a squatter camp outside Johannesburg in 1994 as South Africa prepared to vote in its first non-racial elections.

From BBC ● May 25, 2024

Located half a mile from the Péligre Dam and reservoir, the town was little more than a squatter settlement for the water refugees.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

It is an imposing black puck of a building squatted over the most claustrophobic transit hub in America.

From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026

Many others throughout the country -- particularly around the capital Tirana and Albania's principal port, Durres, were simply squatted.

From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026

Others squatted on balcony steps or leaned against walls for the roughly 90-minute service.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 3, 2026

Freddie Freeman, the walk-off hero of last year’s Fall Classic against the New York Yankees, squatted behind the plate to catch it.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2025

He pulled his hands back and squatted down, ripped open the cupboards below the sink.

From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

The anti-apartheid campaigner came to the UK in the 1980s to avoid conscription to the "apartheid army" where he became part of the "anarchist squatting scene".

From BBC ● May 10, 2026

Ahead of the launch of its Cybercab vehicle, Tesla accuses Unibev of fraud and trademark squatting.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 17, 2026

As labor continued, she got into a squatting position; she let out some squeals and her tail flapped.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 25, 2026

KeyBanc analyst Ashley Owens wrote in a Thursday noet that some Reddit reviews of a Valentine’s edition line of pants with a “scattered heart” pattern indicate that the fabric becomes see-through when bending and squatting.

From MarketWatch ● Feb. 12, 2026

“This place has a nest of secrets like a mother bird squatting on her eggs. They tend to them with fierce protection.”

From "The Marvellers" by Dhonielle Clayton

Related Words

• cower
• crouch
• hunch
• perch
• sit
• stoop