/ spæt; NAmE / noun
1.
( informal ) a short argument or disagreement about sth unimportant
2.
[ usually pl. ] a cloth covering for the ankle that was worn in the past by men over the shoe and fastened with buttons at the side
—see also spit , spitting , spat , spat verb
••
WORD ORIGIN
sense 2 early 19th cent.: abbreviation of spatterdash .
sense 1 early 19th cent. (originally a US colloquial usage): probably imitative.