Etymology : Middle English, from Old English batt
Pronunciation : bat
Function : noun
Date : before 12th century
1. go down.
2. extension for a batch file (Computers). wooden club used in baseball and cricket; racquet; heavy stick; (Zoology) flying nocturnal mammal that resembles a mouse in which the wings are formed by a membrane extending between the fingers and limbs; (British) paddle. hit; strike; blink, wink. long-eared bat.
3. A large stick; a club; specifically, a piece of wood with one end thicker or broader than the other, used in playing baseball, cricket, etc.
4. Shale or bituminous shale.
5. A sheet of cotton used for filling quilts or comfortables; batting.
6. A part of a brick with one whole end.
7. To strike or hit with a bat or a pole; to cudgel; to beat.
8. To use a bat, as in a game of baseball.
9. One of the Cheiroptera, an order of flying mammals, in which the wings are formed by a membrane stretched between the elongated fingers, legs, and tail.
10. The common bats are small and insectivorous.
11. See Cheiroptera and Vampire.
12. Same as Tical, n., 1.
13. To bate or flutter, as a hawk.
14. To wink.
15. In badminton, tennis, and similar games, a racket.
16. A stroke; a sharp blow.
17. A stroke of work.
18. Rate of motion; speed.
19. A spree; a jollification.
20. Manner; rate; condition; state of health. a turn batting; "he was at bat when it happened"; "he got 4 hits in 4 at-bats" nocturnal mouselike mammal with forelimbs modified to form membranous wings and anatomical adaptations for echolocation by which they navigate a club used for hitting a ball in various games wink briefly; "bat one's eyelids" beat thoroughly in a competition or fight; "We licked the other team on Sunday!" strike with, or as if with a baseball bat; "bat the ball" use a bat; "Who's batting?" have a turn at bat; "Jones bats first, followed by Martinez".
21. ,-ty tool for spreading the end of a lead pipe.
22. 1. A bat is a specially shaped piece of wood that is used for hitting the ball in baseball, softball, cricket, rounders, or table tennis. a baseball bat.
23. When you bat, you have a turn at hitting the ball with a bat in baseball, softball, cricket, or rounders. Australia, put in to bat, made a cautious start. + batting bat·ting his batting average He's likely to open the batting.
24. A bat is a small flying animal that looks like a mouse with wings made of skin. Bats are active at night. see also:
old bat.
25. When something surprising or shocking happens, if someone doesn't bat an eyelid in British English, or doesn't bat an eye in American English, they remain calm and do not show any reaction.
26. If someone does something off their own bat, they do it without anyone else suggesting it. Whatever she did she did off her own bat. Whatever she did was nothing to do with me.
27. If something happens right off the bat, it happens immediately. He learned right off the bat that you can't count on anything in this business. Bachelor of Arts in Teaching. To behave in an eccentric, bizarre manner. To show no emotion; appear unaffected: The reporter didn't bat an eyelash while reading the gruesome news. A binge; a spree. battalion. Any member of about 900 species (order Chiroptera) of the only mammals to have evolved true flight. Their wings are evolutionary modification of the forelimbs, with greatly elongated fingers joined by a membrane that extends down the side of the body. Most bats use echolocation to orient themselves and find prey. Found worldwide, they are particularly abundant in the tropics. Wingspreads vary among species from 6 in. (15 cm) to 5 ft (1.5 m). Nearly all species roost during the day (in caves, crevices, burrows, building, or trees) and feed at night. Most are insectivores, consuming enough insects to affect the balance of insect populations. Others feed on fruit, pollen, nectar, or blood (vampire bats). Some may live more than 20 years. The guano of bats has long been used for agricultural fertilizer. See also free-tailed bat, fruit bat. bat eared fox free tailed bat fruit bat Masterson Bat Preah Bat Samdech Preah Norodom Sihanouk vampire bat.