squat

1 of 3

verb

ˈskwät 

squatted; squatting

transitive verb

1

: to cause (oneself) to crouch or sit on the ground

2

: to occupy as a squatter

intransitive verb

1

: to crouch close to the ground as if to escape observation

a hare squatting in the grass

2

a

: to assume or maintain a position in which the body is supported on the feet and the knees are bent so that the buttocks rest on or near the heels

squatted by the campfire

b

: to exercise by performing a squat (see squat entry 3 sense 3a)

3

: to be or become a squatter

squat in an abandoned building

squat

2 of 3

adjective

squatter; squattest

1

: sitting with the haunches close above the heels

2

a

: low to the ground

b

: marked by disproportionate shortness or thickness

squatly adverb

squatness noun

squat

3 of 3

noun

1

a

: the act of squatting

b

: the posture of one that squats

2

a

: a place where one squats

b

: the lair of a small animal

the squat of a hare

3

a

: an exercise in which a standing person lowers to a position in which the torso is erect and the knees are deeply bent and then rises to an upright position

Note: A squat can be done while holding weights, with a barbell on the upper back, or without weights.

b

weight lifting : a lift involving a squat done while holding a barbell on the shoulders

also : a competitive event involving this lift

4

chiefly British : an empty house or building that is occupied by squatters

5

slang : diddly-squat

Synonyms

Verb

• couch
• crouch
• huddle
• hunch
• hunker (down)
• scrunch
• squinch

Adjective

• chunky
• dumpy
• heavyset
• squatty
• stocky
• stout
• stubby
• stumpy
• thickset

Noun

• beans
• bubkes
• bupkes
• bupkus
• continental
• damn
• darn
• durn
• diddly [slang]
• diddly-squat [slang]
• doodley-squat
• doodly-squat
• fig
• ghost
• hoot
• iota
• jot
• lick
• modicum
• rap
• syllable
• tittle
• whit
• whoop

Examples of squat in a Sentence

Verb

He squatted behind the bush to avoid being seen.

A family has been squatting in that house for months.

Adjective

a short, squat woman

Noun

He didn't do squat all day.

She lives in a squat.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Their ordeal, one of several high-profile squatting incidents in Oregon, comes as the state Legislature moves forward on a bipartisan bill aimed at giving property owners faster legal tools to reclaim their homes. —Arick Wierson, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Apr. 2025

The lightning crouch involves squatting on the balls of one’s feet in a baseball catcher position, head lowered and heels touching to increase the chances that electricity that enters your body from a nearby ground strike will go through one foot will exit out the other. —Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 3 Apr. 2025

Adjective

The Cocos Island squat lobster measures less than an inch long, the study said. —Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2025

Slowly squat down while pushing your knees forward. —Laura Campedelli, Verywell Health, 10 Jan. 2025

Noun

Variations If a body weight squat is too challenging, start by sitting back into a chair. —Hilary Achauer, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2025

The surgeon told me the chances of ever doing free-weight squats again were slim. —Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English squatten to crush, crouch in hiding, from Middle French (Picard dialect) esquatir, escuater, from Old French es- ex- + quatir to hide, from Vulgar Latin *coactire to squeeze, alteration of Latin coactare to compel — more at cache

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1580, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing squat

• diddly-squat
• doodley-squat
• doodly-squat

Rhymes for squat

• aught
• baht
• blot
• bott
• bought
• brought
• caught
• clot
• cot
• cott
• dot
• fought

Kids Definition

squat

1 of 3 verb

ˈskwät 

squatted; squatting

1

: to sit or cause (oneself) to sit on one's heels

2

: to occupy land as a squatter

3

: to crouch close to the ground

a hare squatting in the grass

squat

2 of 3 noun

1

: the act of squatting

2

: a squatting posture

squat

3 of 3 adjective

squatter; squattest

1

: being in a squatting posture

2

: low to the ground

3

: being short and thick

squatly adverb

squatness noun