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to rat

to rat

1 8.8
To hunt and catch rats, often using dogs
  • verb
  • /ræt/
translation icon : cazar ratas
  • The dog was trained to rat out the hidden pests in the house.

Examples

Idioms

9 9.9

To care at all about something

Very quickly, especially when leaving or running away

9.9

Very quick and lively in a slightly surprising, playful way

poor as a rat
  • Informal
8.3

Having almost no money or things

Phrasal Verbs

to rat out
  • Informal
76 8.6

To tell the police or another authority about someone's bad action, betraying their trust

Compounds

lab rat
  • Offensive
18 6.1

A person used by others for tests who often feels watched or controlled

rat bastard
  • Offensive
13 9.9

A rude word for a person who is cruel or dishonest

rat race
  • Informal
12 4.0

A busy, competitive working life that leaves little time to relax

pack rat
  • Informal
6 7.4

A person who keeps many things and does not throw them away

hood rat
  • Offensive
5 9.9

An insulting word for a person from a poor neighborhood who behaves in a rough or criminal way

3 4.7

A small animal that digs tunnels and lives mostly underground like a mole

gym rat
  • Slang
2 7.7

A person who spends a lot of time exercising in a gym

1 7.4

A small rat that lives in roofs or attics

1 8.0

A small hopping animal that lives in deserts, often in North America and Mexico, and eats seeds

1 6.3

A small desert animal like a mouse that hops on long hind legs and has a long tail

1 4.2

A large brown rat that lives near people and often causes trouble

1 5.3

A snake that is not poisonous and eats rats and mice

A series of short, sharp tapping sounds like knocking on a door

1 7.4

A person who catches and kills rats to keep places clean

1 2.3

A small dark animal like a large mouse that lives near people and often carries disease

1 2.1

A common rat that lives near people and damages food and buildings

Damaraland mole rat
  • South African
1 9.9

A small burrowing mammal from western Africa that lives in underground colonies

frat rat
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A college student who spends too much time at fraternity parties

A small almost hairless African animal that lives underground in large groups like ants

1 7.7

A series of quick, sharp knocks often on a door or drum

rat with wings
  • Offensive
1 9.8

An annoying person or thing that keeps coming back

1 5.1

A small energetic dog bred to hunt rats

1 7.3

A small North American animal like a rat with a bushy tail that collects objects

1 8.6

A small animal like a mouse that lives in holes in the desert

1 4.1

A brown rat that lives in sewers and other dirty city places

sewer rat
  • Offensive
1 9.0

An insulting name for a person thought to be very bad and not to be trusted

1 6.7

A small wild animal like a rat that lives in forests, builds nests, and often collects things

beaver rat
  • Australian
9.9

A small animal from Australia and New Guinea that lives in water and looks like a beaver

A large shiny black snake from North America that is not venomous and eats rats and mice

bottle rat
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who drinks too much at parties and seeks free drinks

cat and rat
  • Baby Talk
8.0

A circle game where players join hands and raise them to let a child pass while another catches them

A small animal like a rat with soft thick fur and big ears that lives in the Andes

8.1

A wild rat that lives underground and damages crops

dwarf pocket rat
  • Specialized
9.9

A small animal like a mouse with soft fur and pouches in its cheeks

A North American wood rat with dark feet that builds large stick nests

bandicoot rat
  • Indian
9.9

A large burrowing rat with a scaly tail found in India and Sri Lanka

Florida water rat
  • Specialized
9.9

A small animal like a mouse that lives in Florida marshes and swims

marsupial rat
  • Australian
9.9

A small animal like a mouse that eats insects and carries its young in a pouch

8.0

A large snake from South and Southeast Asia that is not poisonous and often enters buildings to catch mice

jerboa rat
  • Australian
9.9

A large Australian mouse-like animal with long back legs that jumps far

kangaroo rat
  • Australian
8.1

A small Australian animal with a pouch that looks like a rat but is related to kangaroos

queen mole rat
  • Specialized
9.2

A larger female in a colony of naked mole rats who is the only one to have babies

rat cheese
  • Slang
8.9

A strong yellow cheese like American cheddar

rat cheese
  • Slang
9.9

A joke name for old food that smells bad

rat kangaroo
  • Australian
8.2

A small Australian animal with a pouch that looks like a rabbit-sized rat

rat typhus
  • Specialized
8.3

A serious disease that causes fever and a rash when fleas spread bacteria to people

rat racer
  • Offensive
8.6

A person who tries to get ahead at work by using unfair or dishonest ways

rat run
  • UK
8.1

A narrow hidden path people use to go somewhere faster

rat-licker
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who praises someone in power to get advantages

rat-tail file
  • Specialized
9.5

A thin metal tool with a round taper used to smooth small round holes and curves

5.5

A large harmless reddish snake from the southern United States that lives on farms and in woods

9.0

A small wild animal like a mouse that lives in marsh grass and eats plants and insects

river rat
  • Informal
8.3

A person who spends a lot of time near rivers and likes boating or fishing

Ord kangaroo rat
  • Specialized
9.9

A small mouse-like animal with large back legs that hops and lives in burrows in the western United States

9.9

A small mammal from southern South America that looks like a shrew and carries its young in a pouch

9.4

A large rat that lives in pine forests and sometimes damages crops

plague rat
  • Offensive
9.9

An insulting word for a person people think is dishonest or harmful

9.9

A small animal like a mouse that uses fur-lined cheek pouches to carry food

9.1

A small animal with a bushy tail that collects and hides small things

tree rat
  • Slang
8.9

A squirrel that people see as a pest

sky rat
  • Slang
9.9

A city bird like a pigeon that people see as a pest

water rat
  • Informal
7.9

A person who likes being in water or on a boat

3.9

A small animal like a rat that lives in or near water

welfare rat
  • Offensive
9.9

An insulting name for a person who cheats to get government help

9.9

A harmful false idea that people who get government help are lazy or dishonest

wharf rat
  • Offensive
9.9

A person who lives near docks and steals from ships or warehouses

8.0

A brown animal like a mouse that lives on docks and eats bait

winter rat
  • Informal
9.9

A person who stays mostly indoors during winter to avoid the cold

winged rat
  • Offensive
9.2

An insulting name for a flying animal like a pigeon that people see as dirty or annoying

wood-rat
  • Specialized
7.6

A small rodent like a mouse from North America with a bushy tail that collects things for its nest

How Thorough

to rat
1 8.8
to hunt
367 1.4
to search
1.0
to scan
127 2.7

Surface Forms

rat infinitive
ratted past
ratted past participle
ratting present participle
rats third person singular

Etymology

Rat as a verb meaning to hunt rats comes from the animal name and the old practice of using dogs to find and catch them. So to rat a barn means to search for and catch real rats.