Wiktionary

spat

See also: Spat, spaț, spať, spát, spät, şpat, ṣpät, and spAt

English edit

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /spæt/
  • Audio (Southern England)(file)

Etymology 1 edit

Old English spittan, spætan.

Verb edit

spat

  1. simple past and past participle of spit
    There was no sink in the room so we spat out the window.
    If I had known you had a spittoon in the corner I would never have spat on the floor.

Etymology 2 edit

Uncertain; perhaps related to spit.

Noun edit

spat (countable and uncountable, plural spats)

  1. The spawn of shellfish, especially oysters and similar molluscs.
    • 2005, TVR Pillay, MN Kutty, Aquaculture: Principles and practices, page 525:
      As spat-fall often occurs in areas away from environments suitable for oyster growing, the collection, transport and sale of oyster spat has developed into a separate industry.
    • 2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History, page 243:
      But Orata’s oysters were, like the dormice and fish, collected in the wild, as spat.
  2. A juvenile shellfish which has attached to a hard surface.
    • 2011, The Pearl Oyster‎[1], page 256:
      Conditions in pearl oyster hatcheries are optimized for growth and survival of spat.
    • 1988, Bivalve Mollusc Culture Research in Thailand‎[2], page 28:
      If the spat are allowed to remain attached to the tank bottom for more than two days, they are difficult to remove without damage to the shell.
Translations edit
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Verb edit

spat (third-person singular simple present spats, present participle spatting, simple past and past participle spatted)

  1. (transitive, intransitive) To spawn. Used of shellfish as above.

Etymology 3 edit

Shortening of spatterdash, from spatter + dash. 1779.

 
A felt spat
 
Australian 1970s Holden Kingswood with spats

Noun edit

spat (plural spats)

  1. (often in the plural) A covering or decorative covering worn over a shoe.
    Coordinate term: gaiter
  2. (automotive, UK, Australia) A piece of bodywork that covers the upper portions of the rear tyres of a car.
    Synonym: (US) fender skirt
  3. (aviation) A drag-reducing aerodynamic fairing covering the upper portions of the tyres of an aeroplane equipped with non-retractable landing gear.
Translations edit

Etymology 4 edit

1804. American English, probably imitative.

Noun edit

spat (plural spats)

  1. A brief argument, falling out, quarrel.
    get into a trivial spat over punctuality
    have a vicious spat with the cousins
    • 2017 January 14, “Some Thais worry that a lasting power struggle is brewing. Others see a minor spat over language, which will quickly be forgotten.”, in The Economist‎[3]:
    • 2022 November 16, Graham Eccles, “The Rest Day Working saga...”, in RAIL, number 970, page 32:
      The downside of this cost-saving strategy was that the train service could only be covered by goodwill. Whenever there was a spat between ASLEF and management - regardless of cause - the withdrawal of this goodwill became a stick with which unions could beat management.
Translations edit

Verb edit

spat (third-person singular simple present spats, present participle spatting, simple past and past participle spatted)

  1. To quarrel or argue briefly.
Translations edit

Further reading edit

Etymology 5 edit

Attested from 1823.

Noun edit

spat (plural spats)

  1. A light blow with something flat.
Translations edit

Verb edit

spat (third-person singular simple present spats, present participle spatting, simple past and past participle spatted)

  1. (transitive and intransitive) To strike with a spattering sound.
    • 1922, B. M. Bower, chapter 3, in The Trail of the White Mule:
      He felt the wind of a second bullet that spatted against a boulder near Barney.
    • 2007 July 13, Nolan Clay, “Co-workers testify about Kelsey's mother”, in Daily Oklahoman, retrieved 25 Aug. 2009:
      "She mentioned she had spatted Kelsey on her diaper with a hairbrush," said Mildred Johnson, a co-worker.
  2. (US, dialect) To slap, as with the open hand; to clap together, as the hands.
    • 1845, Sylvester Judd, Margaret:
      Little Isabel leaped up and down, spatting her hands.
Translations edit

Etymology 6 edit

Latin spatium (“space”)

Noun edit

spat (plural spats)

  1. An obsolete unit of distance in astronomy (symbol S), equal to one billion kilometres.

Anagrams edit

Amis edit

Etymology edit

From Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral edit

spat

  1. four

Danish edit

Etymology edit

From Middle Low German spat. Compare German Spat and Swedish spatt.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

spat c (singular definite spatten, not used in plural form)

  1. spavin (disease of horses characterized by a bony swelling developed on the hock as the result of inflammation of the bones)
  2. få spat – get annoyed or angry

Derived terms edit

Dutch edit

Pronunciation edit

Etymology 1 edit

From Middle Dutch spat.

Noun edit

spat m (plural spatten)

  1. (obsolete) blowgun
    Synonyms: blaaspijp, blaasroer

Etymology 2 edit

From spatten.

Noun edit

spat m (plural spatten, diminutive spatje n)

  1. spot, speckle, stain
Derived terms edit
Descendants edit
  • → Papiamentu: spat

Etymology 3 edit

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb edit

spat

  1. inflection of spatten:
    1. first/second/third-person singular present indicative
    2. imperative

Anagrams edit

Lower Sorbian edit

Pronunciation edit

Verb edit

spat

  1. supine of spaś

Serbo-Croatian edit

Verb edit

spat

  1. Short form of spavati: "Cili Trogir ide spat" = "Cijeli Trogir ide spati" = "The whole City of Trogir goes to sleep"

Swedish edit

Noun edit

spat

  1. (colloquial) definite singular of spad

Taroko edit

Etymology edit

From Proto-Atayalic *səpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral edit

spat

  1. four
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