noun

tat

noun

(informal, chiefly British) Cheap, tacky, or poor-quality items; junk or trinkets.

"The seaside gift shop was full of tat — keyrings, snow globes, the lot."

"He cleared a garage full of old tat before the move."

(informal, British) A tattoo.

"She showed off her new tat on her forearm."

verb

To make lace or trim by knotting thread in a decorative pattern (tatting).

"Her grandmother still tats delicate lace edging by hand."

How to Use Tat

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishCheap, low-value stuff — or, separately, a tattoo or the craft of knotting decorative lace.

When to use it

Informal, mostly British usage in the "junk" and "tattoo" senses.

Common pairings

a load of tat cheap tat

Word Forms

tatted past tense, tatted past tense, tats plural, tats plural, tats plural, tats plural, Tats plural, Tat plural, tats singular, tats singular

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The seaside gift shop was full of _____ — keyrings, snow globes, the lot.

Etymology

The "junk" sense traces back to a Hindi word for coarse canvas cloth (ṭāṭ); the lace-making sense is a separate word thought to come from Scandinavian roots.

Rhymes for tat

stat habitat thermostat

See all rhymes for tat →