squat
- squat
-
I. verb
(squatted; squatting)
Etymology: Middle English squatten to crush, crouch in hiding, from Middle French (Picard dialect) esquatir, escuater, from Old French es- ex- + quatir to hide, from Vulgar Latin *coactire to squeeze, alteration of Latin coactare to compel — more at cache
Date: 15th century
transitive verb
1. to cause (oneself) to crouch or sit on the ground
2. to occupy as a squatter <
squat in an abandoned building
>
intransitive verb
1. to crouch close to the ground as if to escape observation <a hare squatting in the grass
>
2. to assume or maintain a position in which the body is supported on the feet and the knees are bent so that the buttocks rest on or near the heels
3. to be or become a squatter
II. adjective
(squatter; squattest)
Date: 15th century
1. sitting with the haunches close above the heels
2.
a. low to the ground
b. marked by disproportionate shortness or thickness
• squatly adverb
• squatness noun
III. noun
Date: 1580
1.
a. the act of squatting
b. the posture of one that squats
2.
a. a place where one squats
b. the lair of a small animal <the squat of a hare
>
3. a lift in which a standing weight lifter drops to a squatting position and then rises to an upright position while holding a barbell on the shoulders; also a competitive event involving this lift
4. chiefly British an empty house or building that is occupied by squatters
5. slang diddly-squat
New Collegiate Dictionary.
2001.
Synonyms:
Look at other dictionaries:
squat — squat … Dictionnaire des rimes
squat — [ skwat ] n. m. • v. 1975; de squatter ♦ Anglic. 1 ♦ Occupation d un immeuble par des squatteurs. 2 ♦ Habitation occupée par un squatteur. ● squat nom masculin (anglais to squat, s asseoir sur les talons) Action de squatter une habitation.… … Encyclopédie Universelle
squat´ly — squat «skwot», verb, squat|ted or squat, squat|ting, adjective, noun. –v.i. 1. to sit on the heels; crouch: »He found it difficult to squat on his heels for more than a few minutes … Useful english dictionary
Squat — (engl. von to squat, niederhocken) ist ein Begriff aus der Schifffahrt und bezeichnet das fahrdynamische vertikale Absinken eines Schiffes über den eigentlichen Tiefgang hinaus (Absunk oder Sunk), bei gleichzeitiger Vertrimmung. Die Vertrimmung… … Deutsch Wikipedia
Squat — Squat, a. 1. Sitting on the hams or heels; sitting close to the ground; cowering; crouching. [1913 Webster] Him there they found, Squat like a toad, close at the ear of Eve. Milton. [1913 Webster] 2. Short and thick, like the figure of an animal… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Squat — Squat, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Squatted}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Squatting}.] [OE. squatten to crush, OF. esquater, esquatir (cf. It. quatto squat, cowering), perhaps fr. L. ex + coactus, p. p. of cogere to drive or urge together. See {Cogent}, {Squash},… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Squat — Squat, n. 1. The posture of one that sits on his heels or hams, or close to the ground. [1913 Webster] 2. A sudden or crushing fall. [Obs.] Herbert. [1913 Webster] 3. (Mining) (a) A small vein of ore. (b) A mineral consisting of tin ore and spar … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
squat — [skwät] vi. squatted, squatting [ME squatten < MFr esquatir < es (L ex ), intens. + quatir, to press flat < VL * coactire < L coactus, pp. of cogere, to force, compress: see COGENT] 1. to crouch so as to sit on the heels with the… … English World dictionary
Squat — (skw[o^]t), n. (Zo[ o]l.) The angel fish ({Squatina angelus}). [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Squat — Squat, v. t. To bruise or make flat by a fall. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
squat — [adj] short and stocky broad, chunky, dumpy*, fat, heavy, heavyset, splay, thick, thick bodied, thickset; concepts 491,773,779 Ant. lanky, skinny, slender, tall, thin squat [v] lower body by bending knees bow, cower, crouch, hunch, hunker down,… … New thesaurus