Squat

/skwɒt/ adj, noun, verb, slang

adj, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: A position assumed by bending deeply at the knees while resting on one's feet.
  • Grammar: squat is listed as adj, noun, verb, slang.
  • Nearest alternatives: knee bend, abide, adipose, anchor.
  • Useful contrasts: aerodynamic, authorized housing, delicate.
  • Usage evidence: They started using that house as a squat.

How to use "squat"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "squat" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "squat" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "squat" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "squat" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "squat" is acting as adj, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "knee bend" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "squat", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A position assumed by bending deeply at the knees while resting on one's feet.

    "Sit in a squat, with your feet a comfortable distance apart."

  2. 2
    The angel shark (genus Squatina).
  3. 3
    the act of assuming or maintaining a crouching position with the knees bent and the buttocks near the heels wordnet
  4. 4
    Any of various modes of callisthenic exercises performed by moving the body and bending at least one knee.
  5. 5
    exercising by repeatedly assuming a crouching position with the knees bent; strengthens the leg muscles wordnet
Show 10 more definitions
  1. 6
    Any of various modes of callisthenic exercises performed by moving the body and bending at least one knee.; A specific exercise in weightlifting performed by bending deeply at the knees and then rising (back squat), especially with a barbell resting across the shoulders (barbell back squat).

    "The king of all quad exercises, and arguably the best single-weight resistance exercise, is the squat."

  2. 7
    a small worthless amount wordnet
  3. 8
    A building occupied without permission, as practiced by a squatter.

    "Your dumb self can't appreciate the freedom in my thought / The weak sense of autonomy when I'm flipping in my squat"

  4. 9
    A place of concealment in which a hare spends time when inactive, especially during the day; a form.
  5. 10
    A toilet used by squatting as opposed to sitting; a squat toilet.
  6. 11
    Clipping of diddly-squat; something of no value. Canada, US, abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, slang

    "I know squat about nuclear physics."

  7. 12
    A small vein of ore.
  8. 13
    A mineral consisting of tin ore and spar.

    "A Mineral, very ponderous, and probably holding Tin. […] 'Twas part of a Squat, at Hewas-Work; not far from Polgouth, in St. Stephen's Liberty, Cornwall."

  9. 14
    Squat effect.
  10. 15
    A sudden or crushing fall. obsolete

    "bruises, and squats, and falls, which often kill others"

Verb
  1. 1
    To bend deeply at the knees while resting on one's feet.

    "He was not going to squat henlike on his place as the cockies around him did."

  2. 2
    to perform the squat weightlifting exercise wordnet
  3. 3
    To perform one or more callisthenic exercises by moving the body and bending at least one knee.
  4. 4
    sit on one's heels wordnet
  5. 5
    To perform one or more callisthenic exercises by moving the body and bending at least one knee.; To exercise by bending deeply at the knees and then rising, while bearing weight across the shoulders or upper back.

    "For those who are having, or have had, trouble squatting we suggest learning how to squat by performing the front squat […] The front squat allows you almost no alternative but to perform the exercise correctly."

Show 7 more definitions
  1. 6
    occupy (a dwelling) illegally wordnet
  2. 7
    To occupy or reside in a place without the permission of the owner.

    "Huddled together in loathsome files, they squat there over night, or until an inquisitive policeman breaks up the congregation with his club, which in Mulberry Street has always free swing."

  3. 8
    be close to the earth, or be disproportionately wide wordnet
  4. 9
    To sit close to the ground; to stoop, or lie close to the ground, for example to escape observation.

    ""But there seemed to be little satisfaction got out of this run; every moment the hare squatted, and the hounds lost the scent time after time.""

  5. 10
    To bruise or flatten by a fall; to squash. dated
  6. 11
    To cybersquat. Internet

    "The old homepage for L2TP, www.l2tpd.org, has been squatted by a domain squatter. A malicious person could reinstate this domain with malicious code on it."

  7. 12
    To retire a modeling kit or group of modeling kits. slang

    "I can't believe they squatted my favorite faction!"

Adjective
  1. 1
    Relatively short or low, and thick or broad.

    "The SQUILL-INSECT. […] So called from ſome ſimilitude to the Squill-fiſh: chiefly, in having a long Body cover'd with a Cruſt compoſed of ſeveral Rings or Plates. The Head is broad and ſquat. He hath a pair of notable ſharp Fangs before, both hooked inward like a Bulls horns."

  2. 2
    Sitting on one's heels; sitting close to the ground; cowering or crouching.

    "[H]im there they found, / Squat like a toad, cloſe at the ear of Eve, / Aſſaying by his deviliſh art to reach / The organs of her fancy', and with them forge / Illuſions as he liſt, phantaſms and dreams, […]"

Adjective
  1. 1
    having a low center of gravity; built low to the ground wordnet
  2. 2
    short and thick; as e.g. having short legs and heavy musculature wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
knee bendabideadiposeanchorbe enfeoffed ofbe possessed of

Antonyms

aerodynamicauthorized housingdelicateelongated

Example

"They started using that house as a squat."

Common questions

What does "squat" mean?

A position assumed by bending deeply at the knees while resting on one's feet.

What is a synonym for "squat"?

Common synonyms include: knee bend, abide, adipose, anchor, be enfeoffed of, be possessed of.

How do you use "squat" in a sentence?

They started using that house as a squat.

How do you pronounce "squat"?

Pronounced /skwɒt/.

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English squatten, from Old French esquatir, escatir (“compress, press down, lay flat, crush”), from es- (“ex-”) + quatir (“press down, flatten”), from Vulgar Latin *coactire (“press together, force”), from Latin coāctus, perfect passive participle of cōgō (“force together, compress”). The sense “nothing” may be the source or a derivation of diddly-squat.

Etymology 2

From Latin squatina.

More for "squat"

Synonyms

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