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pat

2
[pat]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR pat ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

exactly to the point or purpose; apt; opportune: a pat solution to a problem.
excessively glib; unconvincingly facile: His answers were too pat to suit the examining board.
learned, known, or mastered perfectly or exactly: to have something pat.

adverb

exactly or perfectly.
aptly; opportunely.

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RELATED WORDS

resist

Idioms

    down pat, mastered or learned perfectly: If you're an actor, you have to get your lines down pat.Also down cold.
    stand pat,
    1. to cling or hold firm to one's decision, policy, or beliefs: The government must stand pat in its policy.
    2. Poker.to play a hand as dealt, without drawing other cards.

Origin of pat

2
1570–80; orig. adverbial use of pat1, as obsolete to hit pat to strike accurately
Related formspat·ness, nounpat·ter, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
British Dictionary definitions for stand pat

stand pat

verb (intr)

poker to refuse the right to change any of one's cards; keep one's hand unchanged
to resist change or remain unchanged
Derived Formsstandpatter, noun

pat

1

verb pats, patting or patted

to hit (something) lightly with the palm of the hand or some other flat surfaceto pat a ball
to slap (a person or animal) gently, esp on the back, as an expression of affection, congratulation, etc
(tr) to shape, smooth, etc, with a flat instrument or the palm
(intr) to walk or run with light footsteps
pat someone on the back informal to congratulate or encourage someone

noun

a light blow with something flat
a gentle slap
a small mass of somethinga pat of butter
the sound made by a light stroke or light footsteps
pat on the back informal a gesture or word indicating approval or encouragement

Word Origin for pat

C14: perhaps imitative

pat

2

adverb

Also: off pat exactly or fluently memorized or masteredhe recited it pat
opportunely or aptly
stand pat
  1. mainly US and Canadianto refuse to abandon a belief, decision, etc
  2. (in poker, etc) to play without adding new cards to the hand dealt

adjective

exactly right for the occasion; apta pat reply
too exactly fitting; gliba pat answer to a difficult problem
exactly righta pat hand in poker

Word Origin for pat

C17: perhaps adverbial use (``with a light stroke'') of pat 1

pat

3

noun

on one's pat Australian informal alone; on one's own

Word Origin for pat

C20: rhyming slang, from Pat Malone

Pat

noun

an informal name for an Irishman

Word Origin for Pat

from Patrick
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 stand pat

pat

n.

c.1400, "a blow, stroke," perhaps originally imitative of the sound of patting. Meaning "light tap with hand" is from c.1804. Sense of "that which is formed by patting" (as in pat of butter) is 1754, probably from the verb. Pat on the back in the figurative sense attested by 1804.

pat

adv.

"aptly, suitably, at the right time," 1570s, perhaps from pat (adj.) in sense of "that which hits the mark," a special use from pat (n.) in sense of "a hitting" of the mark. The modern adjective is 1630s, from the adverb.

pat

v.

1560s, "to hit, throw;" meaning "to tap or strike lightly" is from 1714; from pat (n.). Related: Patted; patting. The nursery rhyme phrase pat-a-cake is known from 1823. Alternative patty-cake (usually American English) is attested from 1794 (in "Mother Goose's Melody, or Sonnets for the Cradle," Worcester, Mass.).

Pat

as a fem. proper name, short for Patricia. As a masc. proper name, short for Patrick; hence a nickname for any Irishman.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with stand pat

stand pat

Refuse to change one's position or opinion, as in We're going to stand pat on this amendment to the bylaws. This expression may be derived from the verb pat in the sense of “strike firmly and accurately.” [Late 1800s]

pat

In addition to the idiom beginning with pat

  • pat on the back

also see:

  • stand pat
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.