scat
verb
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L310992 on Wikidata ↗noun
- vocal improvisation with wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or without words at all
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /skæt/
intj
Etymology: Mid 19th century: * perhaps an abbreviation of scatter. * perhaps representing a hiss followed by the word cat. Compare Swedish schas (“shoo, begone”). * Alternatively, from the expression quicker than scat (“in a great hurry”), * Possibly from scoot, from the root of shoot.
- An imperative demand to leave, often understood by speaker and listener as impertinent.
“Scat! Go on! Get out of here!”
“Scat! Shoo! Scat! Geet up! Geet on! Nobody's sick in this house! Nobody wants you here!”
noun
Etymology: From the taxonomic name of the family.
- Any fish in the family Scatophagidae.
verb
Etymology: Mid 19th century: * perhaps an abbreviation of scatter. * perhaps representing a hiss followed by the word cat. Compare Swedish schas (“shoo, begone”). * Alternatively, from the expression quicker than scat (“in a great hurry”), * Possibly from scoot, from the root of shoot.
- To leave quickly.
“Here comes the principal; we'd better scat.”
“We have to scat! Oh-oh—I forgot to look at the clock!”