[bat] n [ME, fr. OE batt] (bef. 12c) 1: a stout solid stick: club
2: a sharp blow: stroke 3 a: a usu. wooden implement used for hitting the ball in various games b: a paddle used in various games (as table tennis) c: the short whip used by a jockey
4. a: batsman b: a turn at batting--usu. used in the phrase at bat
5: batt
6. Brit: rate of speed: gait 7: binge -- off one's own bat chiefly Brit: through one's own efforts -- off the bat : without delay: immediately
[2]bat vb bat.ted ; bat.ting vt (15c) 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 ~ vi 1 a: to strike or hit a ball with a bat b: to take one's turn at bat
2: to wander aimlessly [3]bat n [alter. of ME bakke, prob. of Scand origin; akin to OSw nattbakka bat] (1580): any of a widely distributed order (Chiroptera) of nocturnal usu. 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 [4]bat vt bat.ted ; bat.ting [prob. alter. of
[2]bate] (ca. 1838): to wink esp. in surprise or emotion "never batted an eye"; also: flutter "batted his eyelashes"