PAT


Meaning of PAT in English

transcription, транскрипция: [ pæt ]

( pats, patting, patted)

1.

If you pat something or someone, you tap them lightly, usually with your hand held flat.

‘Don’t you worry about any of this,’ she said patting me on the knee...

The landlady patted her hair nervously...

Wash the lettuce and pat it dry.

VERB : V n on n , V n , V n adj

Pat is also a noun.

He gave her an encouraging pat on the shoulder.

N-COUNT

2.

A pat of butter or something else that is soft is a small lump of it.

N-COUNT : usu N of n

3.

If you say that an answer or explanation is pat , you disapprove of it because it is too simple and sounds as if it has been prepared in advance.

There’s no pat answer to that...

ADJ [ disapproval ]

4.

If you give someone a pat on the back or if you pat them on the back , you show them that you think they have done well and deserve to be praised.

The players deserve a pat on the back...

PHRASE : V inflects [ approval ]

5.

If you have an answer or explanation down pat or off pat , you have prepared and learned it so you are ready to say it at any time.

I have my story down pat...

PHRASE : V inflects

Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Английский словарь Коллинз COBUILD для изучающих язык на продвинутом уровне.