batted; batting
1
: to strike or hit with or as if with a bat
2
a
: to advance (a base runner) by batting
b
: to have a batting average of
3
: to discuss at length : consider in detail
1
a
: to strike or hit a ball with a bat
b
: to take one's turn at bat
2
: to wander aimlessly
plural bats
: any of a widely distributed order (Chiroptera) of nocturnal usually frugivorous or insectivorous flying mammals that have wings formed from four elongated digits of the forelimb covered by a cutaneous membrane and that have adequate visual capabilities but often rely on echolocation
see also bats in the belfry
batted; batting
: to wink especially in surprise or emotion
never batted an eye
bachelor of arts in teaching
Synonyms
Noun (1)
- bang
- bash
- beat
- belt
- biff
- blow
- bop
- box
- buffet
- bust
- chop
- clap
- clip
- clout
- crack
- cuff
- dab
- douse [British]
- fillip
- hack
- haymaker
- hit
- hook
- knock
- larrup [dialect]
- lash
- lick
- pelt
- pick
- plump
- poke
- pound
- punch
- rap
- slam
- slap
- slug
- smack
- smash
- sock
- spank
- stinger
- stripe
- stroke
- swat
- swipe
- switch
- thud
- thump
- thwack
- wallop
- welt
- whack
- wham
- whop
- whap
Verb (1)
Examples of bat in a Sentence
Noun (1)
a sharp bat with a rolled-up newspaper and that fly was a goner
riot policemen armed with bats and tear gas
Verb (1)
batted the lamp off the table with one strike
batted the piñata until it finally broke open
on Sunday afternoons we'd pile into Father's car and bat around the countryside
Recent Examples on the Web
Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2024
The ex-Florida Gator is batting .224 with one home run and 11 RBIs and had the second most hits (32) among any rookie in the American League.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 May 2024
Connecting through Phoenix, Sabol arrived at the team hotel at about 6 a.m.
In 21 games at Triple-A Sacramento, the 26-year-old left-handed hitter is batting .243 with one homer and a .703 OPS but said he’s only recently begun to gain his timing.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 4 May 2024
The stunt performer whiffed at Gosling with a baseball bat, so Gosling batted him over the head with the mug and threw another performer against a wall before greeting comedian Jeff Ross, who also appeared on Wednesday's episode.
—Tommy McArdle, Peoplemag, 2 May 2024
These are two people who have a deep spiritual connection, and there are so many examples in movies and TV where there are bigger age gaps, and nobody bats an eye because the man is the older part of the relationship.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 2 May 2024
In interviews, Alwyn batted away questions about the relationship.
—Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 19 Apr. 2024
The sophomore is batting .435 and has nine RBIs this season.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 8 Apr. 2024
Swing For The Fences This third annual event by Detroit PAL will give participants the chance to bat at The Corner Ballpark (historic Tiger Stadium site) before heading to the Detroit Tigers’ Opening Day.
—Brendel Hightower, Detroit Free Press, 4 Apr. 2024
Corey Buhay, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 May 2024
If an employer matches a retirement plan contribution, that would translate into an automatic 50% return off the bat.
—Aldo Svaldi, The Denver Post, 5 May 2024
Baring-Gould, who had fifteen children and kept a tame bat, wrote more than a thousand literary works, including some thirty novels, a biography of Napoleon, and an influential study of werewolves.
—Sam Knight, The New Yorker, 4 May 2024
For the folks in Washtenaw County, residents can report bat exposure and/or animal bites here.
—Amaris Encinas, USA TODAY, 3 May 2024
The blossom's smell attracts nocturnal pollinators, including bats and moths.
—Laura Daniella Sepulveda, The Arizona Republic, 3 May 2024
After striking out against Miller for the second time this week, Soto slammed his bat.
—Mercury News Staff and Wire Reports, The Mercury News, 25 Apr. 2024
Midges are an ample food source for ducks, bats, insect-eating birds and small fish like minnows and baby perch, salmon and trout.
—Journal Sentinel, 25 Apr. 2024
That works out to nearly a third of its MSRP right off the bat, and that doesn’t even include tax breaks or utility rebates for buyers.
—Andy Kalmowitz / Jalopnik, Quartz, 18 Apr. 2024
Verb
Ohtani, who was selected National League player of the week earlier Monday, also singled in the fourth inning, stole two bases and is batting .389 (21 for 54) with seven homers and 16 RBIs in his last 13 games.
—Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 7 May 2024
The ex-Florida Gator is batting .224 with one home run and 11 RBIs and had the second most hits (32) among any rookie in the American League.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 May 2024
Connecting through Phoenix, Sabol arrived at the team hotel at about 6 a.m.
In 21 games at Triple-A Sacramento, the 26-year-old left-handed hitter is batting .243 with one homer and a .703 OPS but said he’s only recently begun to gain his timing.
—Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 4 May 2024
The stunt performer whiffed at Gosling with a baseball bat, so Gosling batted him over the head with the mug and threw another performer against a wall before greeting comedian Jeff Ross, who also appeared on Wednesday's episode.
—Tommy McArdle, Peoplemag, 2 May 2024
These are two people who have a deep spiritual connection, and there are so many examples in movies and TV where there are bigger age gaps, and nobody bats an eye because the man is the older part of the relationship.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 2 May 2024
In interviews, Alwyn batted away questions about the relationship.
—Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 19 Apr. 2024
The sophomore is batting .435 and has nine RBIs this season.
—Nathan Canilao, The Mercury News, 8 Apr. 2024
Swing For The Fences This third annual event by Detroit PAL will give participants the chance to bat at The Corner Ballpark (historic Tiger Stadium site) before heading to the Detroit Tigers’ Opening Day.
—Brendel Hightower, Detroit Free Press, 4 Apr. 2024
Noun
The deeper caves are now roped off to the public, and the above-ground visitor center—a building shaped like a bat—is largely dedicated to bat education.
—Corey Buhay, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 May 2024
If an employer matches a retirement plan contribution, that would translate into an automatic 50% return off the bat.
—Aldo Svaldi, The Denver Post, 5 May 2024
Baring-Gould, who had fifteen children and kept a tame bat, wrote more than a thousand literary works, including some thirty novels, a biography of Napoleon, and an influential study of werewolves.
—Sam Knight, The New Yorker, 4 May 2024
For the folks in Washtenaw County, residents can report bat exposure and/or animal bites here.
—Amaris Encinas, USA TODAY, 3 May 2024
The blossom's smell attracts nocturnal pollinators, including bats and moths.
—Laura Daniella Sepulveda, The Arizona Republic, 3 May 2024
After striking out against Miller for the second time this week, Soto slammed his bat.
—Mercury News Staff and Wire Reports, The Mercury News, 25 Apr. 2024
Midges are an ample food source for ducks, bats, insect-eating birds and small fish like minnows and baby perch, salmon and trout.
—Journal Sentinel, 25 Apr. 2024
That works out to nearly a third of its MSRP right off the bat, and that doesn’t even include tax breaks or utility rebates for buyers.
—Andy Kalmowitz / Jalopnik, Quartz, 18 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bat.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near bat
Cite this Entry
“Bat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bat. Accessed 12 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
bat
2 of 4 verb
batted; batting
1
: to strike or hit with or as if with a bat
2
: to take one's turn at bat in baseball
3
: to have a batting average of
is batting .300
bat
3 of 4 noun
: any of an order of night-flying mammals with the forelimbs modified to form wings
bat
4 of 4 verb
batted; batting
: to wink especially in surprise or emotion
never batted an eye
Etymology
Noun
Old English batt "club"
Noun
from Middle English bakke "flying bat"; probably of Scandinavian origin
Verb
probably an altered form of earlier bate "to beat the wings in an impatient manner"
Medical Definition
bat
noun
: any of an order (Chiroptera) of nocturnal placental flying mammals with forelimbs modified to form wings
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