pat

Noun

pat (plural pats)

1. The sound of a light slap or tap with a soft flat object, especially of a footstep.

   We heard a pat on the door.

2. A light tap or slap, especially with the hands.

   Give Mary a pat on the shoulder to get her attention.

3. A flattish lump of soft matter, especially butter or dung.
   • 1842 December – 1844 July, Charles Dickens, chapter 45, in The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1844, →OCLC:

     It looked like a tessellated work of pats of butter.

Verb

pat (third-person singular simple present pats, present participle patting, simple past and past participle patted)

1. To (gently) tap the flat of one's hand on a person or thing.

   To show affection, he decided he would pat the boy on the head.

   • [1877], Anna Sewell, “Earlshall”, in Black Beauty: […], London: Jarrold and Sons, […], →OCLC, part II, page 103:

     He came round to each of us to pat and speak to us for the last time; his voice sounded very sad.

2. To hit lightly and repeatedly with the flat of the hand to make smooth or flat

   I patted the cookie dough into shape.

   • 1900 May 17, L[yman] Frank Baum, chapter 23, in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Chicago, Ill.; New York, N.Y.: Geo[rge] M[elvin] Hill Co., →OCLC:

     Before they went to see Glinda, however, they were taken to a room of the Castle, where Dorothy washed her face and combed her hair, and the Lion shook the dust out of his mane, and the Scarecrow patted himself into his best shape, and the Woodman polished his tin and oiled his joints.

3. (UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa) To stroke or fondle (an animal). Compare pet.

   Do you want to pat the cat?

4. To gently rain.

Adjective

pat (comparative more pat, superlative most pat)

1. Exactly suitable, fitting, apt; timely, convenient, opportune, ready for the occasion; especially of things spoken.

   a pat expression

   • 1788, William Cowper, Pity For Poor Africans 17–20:

     Your scruples and arguments bring to my mind a story so pat, you may think it is coin’d, on purpose to answer you, out of my mint; but, I can assure you, I saw it in print.

   • 1862, John Williamson Palmer, Stonewall Jackson's Way :

     Come, stack arms, Men! Pile on the rails; stir up the campfire bright; no matter if the canteen fails, we'll make a roaring night. Here Shenandoah brawls along, there burly Blue Ridge echoes strong, to swell the Brigade's rousing song, of “Stonewall Jackson’s Way.”
     We see him now — the old slouched hat cocked o’er his eye askew, the shrewd, dry smile, the speech so pat, so calm, so blunt, so true.

2. Trite, being superficially complete, lacking originality.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:hackneyed

   • 1987 August 15, Laurie Sherman, “What's A Dyke To Do? A Lesbian Reluctantly Enters The Age Of Safe Sex”, in Gay Community News, volume 15, number 5, page 11:

     While most AIDS activists and researchers I spoke with agreed I shouldn't offer pat safe/unsafe categories, let me share some pretty widely accepted information.

   • 2010 May 22, “Jobs and the Class of 2010”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:

     The pat answer is that college students should consider graduate school as a way to delay a job search until things turn around, and that more high school students should go to college to improve their prospects.

   • 2021 July 14, A. A. Dowd, “Space Jam: A New Legacy is one big, witless commercial for Warner Bros properties”, in The A.V. Club‎:

     Space Jam: A New Legacy takes almost nothing but wrong turns, all leading to a glittering CGI trash heap of cameos, pat life lessons, and stale internet catchphrases.

   • 2021, Kate Crawford, chapter 2, in Atlas of AI […] , →ISBN:

     Pat responses from management seemed to be multiple variations on the theme of “We value your feedback.”

Adverb

pat (comparative more pat, superlative most pat)

1. Opportunely, in a timely or suitable way.
   • c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iii]:

     Now might I do it pat

2. Perfectly.

   He has the routine down pat.

3. Straight, right, exactly, precisely.
   • 1922 September 22, “At the Wauwatosa Table”, in City Club News, volume viii, number 2, Milwaukee, page 7:

     Wauwa Pease says of the strategic position of the Pirates in the dining room: “They have taken the table near the upper doorway so they can make a speedy exit in case their lair is raided.” Of course, the Wauwas stand pat in the middle of the dining room, having nothing to fear.

   • 1922, E[ric] R[ücker] Eddison, The Worm Ouroboros‎, London: Jonathan Cape, page 8:

     His nose sitteth flat on the face of him as it were a dab of clay, and I can see pat up his nostrils a summer day’s journey into his head.

   • 1962, Newsweek:

     Candidates in gubernatorial campaigns must stand pat in the middle, trying to push their rivals off the center line, charging the opponent with either left or right extremism.

   • 1995, Ken Saro-Wiwa, A Month and a Day, page 112:

     In Ogoni[land], Shell locations lie pat in the middle of villages, in front and back gardens – and that should lay a particular responsibility on Shell to be absolutely cautious in its operations.

See also

Noun

pat (plural pats)

1. Clipping of patent.
2. (knitting) Clipping of pattern.
   • 2012, Kari Cornell, Knitting Sweaters from around the World, page 52:

     Work in pat to next underarm marker, sm, place next st on holder […]

Adjective

pat (comparative more pat, superlative most pat)

1. (slang) Upper-class, nobby.

See also

Related terms

• pasuri
• kam
• pata

Related terms

• pãtsiri / pãtsire
• pãtsit

Pronunciation

Classifier

pat

1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) Alternative form of 坺 (pet6)

Pronunciation

Noun

pat

1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) Alternative form of 噼 (pet1)