hat

1 of 2

noun

ˈhat 

1

: a covering for the head usually having a shaped crown and brim

2

a

: a distinctive head covering worn as a symbol of office

b

: an office, position, or role assumed by or as if by the wearing of a special hat

wore many hats in her career

hatless

ˈhat-ləs 

adjective

see also:

under one's hat hats off to

hat

2 of 2

verb

hatted; hatting

transitive verb

: to furnish or provide with a hat

intransitive verb

: to make or supply hats

Synonyms of hat

Noun

• cap
• helmet
• chapeau
• headdress
• hood
• headgear

Examples of hat in a Sentence

Noun

in those days, no properly dressed person left home without a hat

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Grandstands that typically sit empty will again fill with patrons in tailored suits, flowing dresses and stylish hats as Laurel Park hosts the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, the second leg of horse racing's Triple Crown. —CBS News, 13 May 2026

Minutes before the opening of his latest show, artist Gary Baseman, dressed as a retro diner cook, in a red-orange jumpsuit, white apron and hat, paced around Johnie’s Coffee Shop, moving art frames from one counter to another and adjusting the position of a cartoon cat plush toy. —Iris Kwok may 12, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026

Verb

Loop initiates Wex as buy Loop said in its initiation of Wex t hat the fin tech company is firing on all cylinders. —Michael Bloom, CNBC, 28 Apr. 2026

Other memorabilia includes Dawson’s flannel shirt worn throughout the TV series and the the cleats and West Canaan Coyotes hat the actor used in 1999’s Varsity Blues. —Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 12 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English hæt; akin to Old High German huot head covering — more at hood entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Phrases Containing hat

• at the drop of a hat
• black hat
• brass hat
• bucket hat
• coat-check/hat-check girl
• cocked hat
• cowboy hat
• doff one's hat to
• flat-hat
• hang one's hat
• hang one's hat on
• hard hat
• hat in hand
• hat trick
• high-hat
• hi-hat
• I'll eat my hat
• into a cocked hat
• keep (something) under one's hat
• old hat
• opera hat
• panama hat
• pass the hat
• picture hat
• plug hat
• porkpie hat
• pot hat
• put one's tinfoil hat on
• shovel hat
• silk hat
• slouch hat
• straw-hat
• sun hat
• take one's hat off to
• talk through one's hat
• ten-gallon hat
• throw one's hat in the ring
• throw/toss one's hat in/into the ring
• tinfoil hat
• tin hat
• tip one's cap/hat
• top hat
• trucker hat
• under one's hat
• wear a tinfoil hat
• white hat

Rhymes for hat

• at
• bat
• batt
• brat
• cat
• chat
• fat
• flat
• gat
• gnat
• kat
• mat

Kids Definition

hat

noun

ˈhat

1

: a covering for the head usually having a shaped crown and brim

2

a

: a distinctive head covering worn as a symbol of office

b

: an office, position, or role assumed as if by the wearing of a special hat

wears many hats in her job