hat
- noun
- /hæt/
- Informal
- Give me something to hang my hat on, I don't care what it is.
- many hats
- multiple hats
- thinking hat
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Watch on YouTubeSo we've talked about the two hats of reading.
- So we've talked about the two hats of reading.
- So you can decide which hat I'm wearing in in with each topic.
Examples
-
Would you please put your White House hat back on for this?
Academic text (2000) -
You guys, I'm gonna take the host hat for a moment.
-
Hold on to your hats, folks.
-
Being sweet-talked was old hat, as she did extra work for half the department.
Fiction book (1993) -
You have to take your hat off to Daniel Dravot.
-
With her choice of title, the artist tips her hat to the weird and zany persuasion of her objects.
Academic text (2005) -
Billy's one of the ones that wears the chef's hats and ladles out the food.
Fiction book (1994) -
In this project, I have to wear my teacher's hat and guide the students.
-
When discussing the budget, you need to put on your finance hat and analyze the numbers.
-
As a parent, she often has to switch to her coaching hat to help her children with their activities.
Idioms
- Informal
In a humble and respectful way when you ask for something or admit a mistake
- Informal
Find a surprising way to solve a problem at the last moment
- Informal
To say you are very sure something will not happen and would do something silly if it did
- Informal
To say you will run for a position, for example in an election
To decide to start something difficult and not change your mind
Compounds
A hat of thin metal foil people wear because they think it stops mind control or spying
- Archaic
A tall hat with straight sides that people wear with formal clothes in the 1800s
- UK
A decorative, often large hat that some women, especially Black women, wear to church on Sundays
A tall formal hat for men often covered with silk or fur and worn with a formal suit
- Jargon
A person who finds computer security problems and sometimes breaks the law to test them
- US
A wide-brimmed felt hat with a high crown that soldiers, park rangers, and state troopers wear
- Specialized
A pair of small metal plates on a stand that a drummer opens and closes with a foot pedal
- Specialized
A low, slow-growing plant with leaves that stay green part of the year and cover the ground
- Archaic
A stiff hat with a wide brim and a front that sticks out often worn by church priests
How Senior
Surface Forms
Etymology
Hat is also used to mean a job or 'role' because different hats once showed different jobs, so putting on a hat meant taking that role. That's why someone who 'wears many hats' has many responsibilities.