Nearby Words
verb (used without object)
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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Squatting
is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
| a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
adjective
8.
(of a person, animal, the body, etc.) short and thickset.
9.
low and thick or broad: The building had a squat shape.
10.
seated or being in a squatting position; crouching.
noun
11.
the act or fact of squatting.
12.
a squatting position or posture.
13.
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.
14.
Nautical. the tendency of a vessel to draw more water astern when in motion than when stationary.
15.
EXPANDSlang. doodly-squat.
Origin:
1250–1300; (v.) Middle English squatten < Old French esquater, esquatir, equivalent to es- ex-1 + quatir < Vulgar Latin *coactīre to compress, equivalent to Latin coāct(us), past participle of cōgere to compress (co- co- + ag(ere) to drive + -tus past participle suffix) + -īre infinitive suffix; (noun) Middle English, derivative of the v.; (adj.) Middle English: in a squatting position, orig., past participle of the v.
1250–1300; (v.) Middle English squatten < Old French esquater, esquatir, equivalent to es- ex-1 + quatir < Vulgar Latin *coactīre to compress, equivalent to Latin coāct(us), past participle of cōgere to compress (co- co- + ag(ere) to drive + -tus past participle suffix) + -īre infinitive suffix; (noun) Middle English, derivative of the v.; (adj.) Middle English: in a squatting position, orig., past participle of the v.
Related forms
squat·ly, adverb
squat·ness, noun
Synonyms
8. dumpy, stocky, square.
8. dumpy, stocky, square.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
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Link To squatting
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
squat
c.1410, "crouch on the heels," from O.Fr. esquatir "press down, lay flat, crush," from es- "out" (from L. ex-) + O.Fr. quatir "press down, flatten," from V.L. *coactire "press together, force," from L. coactus, pp. of cogere "to compel, curdle, collect" (see cogent). Slang
EXPANDsense of "nothing at all" first attested 1934, probably suggestive of squatting to defecate. The adjective sense of "short, thick" dates from 1630. Squatter "settler who occupies land without legal title" first recorded 1788; in ref. to paupers or homeless people in uninhabited buildings, it is recorded from 1880.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
squat definition
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Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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