squat

verb \ ˈskwät \

|Updated on: 18 Jun 2018

Examples: squat in a Sentence

Definition of squat

squatted; squatting

transitive verb

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

2 : to occupy as a squatter

squat in an abandoned building

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 ³squat 3a)

3 : to be or become a squatter

See squat defined for English-language learners

See squat defined for kids

Examples of squat in a Sentence

He squatted behind the bush to avoid being seen.
A family has been squatting in that house for months.

Recent Examples of squat from the Web

If you're amped: A D.I.Y. BOOT CAMP Perform each of the following exercises for one minute, then rest for a minute, and repeat the series twice more: jumping jacks, lunges across the living room floor, push-ups, squats, and a plank.

— Redbook, "How to Streamline Your Weekday Mornings, Start to Finish," 5 Sep. 2012
Watch: Sarah Silverman Is History's Worst Teammate Single-leg mini-squatsWhat: Stand on one leg, keeping your hips level, and drop it low.

— adrienne jordan, GQ, "6 Unilateral Exercises That Will Turn Your Limbs to Wobbly Mush," 28 May 2018
Antonio Villaraigosa squats to speak with supporters as other California gubernatorial candidates John Chiang (left), John Cox and Gavin Newsom wait for a January debate to begin.

— San Francisco Chronicle, "June 5 primary could decide California governor’s race," 21 May 2018
Naeh appears to be lifting his feet as the official squats.

— Washington Post, "Israel-Turkey spat escalates over Gaza violence," 16 May 2018
Marlins closer Brad Ziegler has never squatted behind the plate and caught another pitcher during a major league game.

— andre c. fernandez, miamiherald, "His full-time job is as the Marlins' closer. But he also loves catching for the stars | Miami Herald," 12 May 2018
Rhee squatted on the floor and promptly shot through a routine of 103 pushups in just one minute.

— chad pergram, Fox News, "A giant of Congress has passed leaving scores of martial arts disciplines behind," 5 May 2018
Two years later, Hall shattered the regional record by squatting 660 pounds.

— carter karels, San Antonio Express-News, "Seguin’s P.J. Hall defies odds after no combine invite, light recruitment," 4 May 2018
Think squatting down to pick up a box from the floor and walking it up a flight of stairs.

— NBC News, "5 simple exercises for stronger, tighter glutes," 2 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'squat.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of squat

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

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First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

squat Synonyms

Synonyms

couch, crouch, huddle, hunch, hunker (down), scrunch, squinch;

Related Words

curl up;

squat

adjective

Definition of squat

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

See squat defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of squat from the Web

Yes, from Tuesday through Saturday at 5 p.m. Killen's, known for long lines of barbecue fans, operates as a traditional restaurant with a hostess stand and waitstaff attending tables set with black linens and a squat vase of roses.

— greg morago, Houston Chronicle, "A Killen’s Tex-Mex restaurant in Houston?," 12 June 2018
But the Faithists, who meet in a humble storefront church on the ground floor of a squat brick building, stand apart with an unusual history.

— sam kestenbaum, New York Times, "A Forgotten Religion Gets a Second Chance in Brooklyn," 7 June 2018
One example is the Apple iPhone; Foxconn in China doesn’t make squat assembling them.

— ed wallace, star-telegram, "Getting Mileage Out of Jobs," 26 May 2018
Pratt wrote on Instagram, inspiring us to squat/flex/lunge our way to toned cheeks.

— grace gavilanes, PEOPLE.com, "The Chris Pratt Guide to Getting Red Carpet-Ready," 22 May 2018
The vehicle was eventually stopped by one of the squat metal barriers.

— Washington Post, "National news in brief: Some NYC locations to get permanent security barriers," 6 Mar. 2018
On the hills, anti-aircraft guns tower over the squat one-storey villages.

— The Economist, "What life is like for ordinary North Koreans," 26 May 2018
Jump your feet back toward you into a squat position.

— allyson chiu, ajc, "Woman says she broke burpee world record. Why many disagree," 8 May 2018
Marauding through Central Asia in the 13th century, Genghis Khan either failed to notice or ignored a small, squat structure in Bukhara, an ancient Silk Road city in what is now Uzbekistan.

— judith h. dobrzynski, WSJ, "A Final Resting Place, Both Beguiling and Beautiful," 4 May 2018

First Known Use of squat

15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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squat Synonyms

Synonyms

chunky, dumpy, heavyset, squatty, stocky, stout, stubby, stumpy, thickset;

Near Antonyms

delicate, fragile, frail, puny;

lean, skinny, slender, slim, spare, thin;

angular, bony (also boney), gaunt, lank, lanky, rawboned, sinewy;

scraggy, scrawny, slight;

spindly, twiggy, waspish, weedy, willowy, wiry;

chubby, heavy, plump, portly, pudgy, roly-poly, rotund, round, tubby;

squat

noun

Definition of squat

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

See squat defined for English-language learners

Examples of squat in a Sentence

He didn't do squat all day.
She lives in a squat.

Recent Examples of squat from the Web

In a squat, pause at the bottom; while benching, pause with the bar just off your chest; while deadlifting, pause a few inches off the ground while maintaining proper form.

— adrienne jordan, GQ, "4 Smart Ways to Make Your Workout Routine Challenging Again," 22 May 2018
Covey's regimen included squats and weight lifting.

— thom leavy, CBS News, "Colorado teen overcomes disability to walk across stage at graduation," 20 May 2018
Keeping your back straight, bend knees, push hips back, and lower down into a squat. Explode up off the ground, land back in the sumo squat position, and repeat.

— blake bakkila, Health.com, "9 Ways Britney Spears Is Getting Her Abs Ready for Summer," 25 Apr. 2018
My introductory workout at River North CrossFit (330 W. Ontario St. 312-643-0406) included burpees, kettlebell swings, weighted squats and 10-pound medicine ball wall-throws four times through.

— shelbie lynn bostedt, RedEye Chicago, "Get moving: What to know before you try CrossFit," 5 July 2017
Keeping your chest high and knees behind your toes, bend your knees and sit back into a squat, letting your arms hang along your sides.

— elizabeth narins, Cosmopolitan, "4 Exercises to Do When You Haven't Worked Out in Forever," 15 Jan. 2016
Start with elevated lateral squats: Grab an exercise step.

— jenny mccoy, SELF, "Strengthen Your Entire Body With This 1 Compound Exercise Move From Jennifer Garner’s Trainer," 23 May 2018
Velu awoke at dawn, ate rice and yam curry for breakfast, and practiced long jumps, military crawls, squats, rope-walking, and running.

— Longreads, "A Chance to Rewrite History: The Women Fighters of the Tamil Tigers," 22 May 2018
After a few seconds, the female squats against the wall, and defecates.

— madeleine marr, miamiherald, "A Canadian woman really needed to use the bathroom. Then she got angry, cops say. | Miami Herald," 16 May 2018

First Known Use of squat

1580

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

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SQUAT Defined for English Language Learners

squat

verb

Definition of squat for English Language Learners

: to bend your knees and lower your body so that you are close to your heels or sitting on your heels
: to live in a building or on land without the owner's permission and without paying

squat

adjective

Definition of squat for English Language Learners

: short and thick

squat

noun

Definition of squat for English Language Learners

: a position in which your knees are bent and your body lowered so that you are close to your heels or sitting on your heels
: the least amount : anything at all
: an empty building that squatters live in

SQUAT Defined for Kids

squat

verb \ ˈskwät \

Definition of squat for Students

squatted; squatting

1 : to crouch by bending the knees fully so as to sit on or close to the heels

2 : to settle without any right on land that someone else owns

3 : to settle on government land in order to become its owner

squat

adjective

Definition of squat for Students

squatter; squattest

1 : low to the ground

2 : having a short thick body

squat

noun

Definition of squat for Students

: a position in which the knees are fully bent and the body sits on or close to the heels

Learn More about squat

See words that rhyme with squat Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for squat Spanish Central: Translation of squat Nglish: Translation of squat for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of squat for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about squat

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squat

Definition of squat

Examples of squat in a Sentence

Recent Examples of squat from the Web

Origin and Etymology of squat

squat Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

squat

Definition of squat

squatly

squatness

Recent Examples of squat from the Web

First Known Use of squat

squat Synonyms

Synonyms

Near Antonyms

Related Words

squat

Definition of squat

Examples of squat in a Sentence

Recent Examples of squat from the Web

First Known Use of squat

SQUAT Defined for English Language Learners

squat

Definition of squat for English Language Learners

squat

Definition of squat for English Language Learners

squat

Definition of squat for English Language Learners

SQUAT Defined for Kids

squat

Definition of squat for Students

squat

Definition of squat for Students

squat

Definition of squat for Students

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