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
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
Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2025
The home run was one of two balls that left Alonso's bat at speeds of over 110 mph on Saturday.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
Dan Duggan, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Jones also batted down a pass, and he was credited for four quarterback pressures.
—Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bat
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Noun
There were also tough spells during which the KC bats just couldn’t get anything going.
—Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2025
The home run was one of two balls that left Alonso's bat at speeds of over 110 mph on Saturday.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
Verb
That was the case even before Lawrence batted a Herbert pass at the line, reeled in his first career interception and rumbled 37-yards to the Chargers’ 3-yard line to set up a field goal.
—Dan Duggan, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
Jones also batted down a pass, and he was credited for four quarterback pressures.
—Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bat
Cite this Entry
“Bat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bat. Accessed 1 Oct. 2025.
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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