rat
Pluralrats
Pluralrats
- 1An animal like a big mouse, with a long thin tail.
Like a big mouse with a long, bare tail.
A rat slipped through the gap under the kitchen door.
The rats in the barn chewed through every sack of grain.
UsageSmell a rat means feel that something is wrong.
Note
- 2To turn against people, especially by telling the police or someone in charge what they did.
Like a kid who tells the teacher that a classmate cheated.
He promised never to rat on his teammates.
If you rat, no one will trust you again.
UsageSay rat on someone or rat someone out.
Note
- 3A person who spends a lot of their time at one certain place.
Like a kid who is always at the playground, no matter the weather.
He's such a gym rat that the staff know him by name.
Every summer she becomes a beach rat, vanishing to the shore at sunrise.
UsageUsed after a place: a gym rat.
Similarregular
- 4A bad person who cannot be trusted, especially one who tells the police or others about friends.
Like a friend who shares your secret with everyone.
Everyone called him a rat after he broke his promise.
Only a rat would steal from his own best friend.
UsageOften What a rat!
Similartraitor, informer, snitch, turncoat, fink
Note
Less common meanings
- 5A worker who goes against their trade union, often by working during a strike.
Like a teammate who keeps playing while the rest of the team refuses.
The other workers called him a rat for crossing the picket line.
No one trusts a rat who works during a strike.
Similarscab, strikebreaker, blackleg
- 6Short form of muskrat: a furry animal that lives in marshes and ponds and swims well.
Every winter, Grandpa trapped rats in the marsh and sold their fur.
We watched a rat swim to its cattail lodge in the pond.
Note
- 7Used to show anger or annoyance, like a mild curse word.
“But, rat me, sir,” cried Foster in bewilderment, “tis too generous—'pon honour it is. I can't consent to it. No, rat me, I can't.”
1904, Rafael Sabatini, The Tavern KnightHere, rat me is a mild oath, a way to show strong feeling.Similardrat, darn, blast, dang
Note
- 8
- 9To hunt and kill rats, often to keep them out of a building.
Like a cat that chases mice around the house.
Terriers were bred to rat in barns and warehouses.
The farmer spent all morning ratting in the old stable.
UsageOften in go ratting.
- 10
- 11A small pad, often made of saved hair, that hair is wrapped around to make it look fuller.
Like wrapping a scarf around a rolled towel so it looks plumper.
She wound her hair over a rat to build a tall, rounded style.
The stylist pinned a rat in place before arranging the curls around it.
Similarpad
- 12A rude slang word for a woman's private parts.
She pulled the towel tight to cover her rat.
He got a slap for grabbing at her rat in the pub.
Note
- 13
- 14A scratch or mark scraped onto a surface.
- 15To make a scratch or mark on something.
- 16A part of the sea with fast water and sharp rocks where ships can be wrecked in storms.
- 17To tear or rip something apart.
Showing meanings only.
Practice
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Origins
From Old English rætt, coming from older Germanic words. Its origin before that is uncertain.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
- English rat derives from Old English rætt, which descends from earlier Germanic forms. en.wiktionary.org
- The word's ultimate origin is uncertain. en.wiktionary.org
From Middle English ratten; its earlier origin is unknown.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
- This sense of rat comes from Middle English ratten; its further origin is unknown. en.wiktionary.org