spat
4
9.9
- noun
- /spæt/
- Archaic
:
polaina
- There's dog's dirt all over your spats, sir.
- wear spats
- shoes and spats
- a pair of spats
Examples
-
He's dressed in the uniform of a 1920s usher: spats, white gloves, pillbox hat.
Fiction book (1993) -
During the coldest part of winter, he was probably the last man in Richmond to fasten on dove gray spats.
Fiction book (1993) -
What if I bought some spats to go along with them?
Fiction book (1990) -
You should ought to see me in spats.
-
His spats matched the flowers.
Fiction book (1993) -
Wore spats and a derby all the time.
-
And do you see?,' she pointed, 'your grandfather even wore spats; he was also a fashionable man.'
Fiction book (1997) -
He took this walk wearing spats, a silk topper, and a Prince Albert with wing collar and four-in-hand.
Fiction book (1993) -
His swallowtail coat was already wrinkled, and his cravat was askew, and one of his spats was not entirely buttoned.
Fiction book (1991) -
For formal occasions, many people wear spats to complement their attire.
Synonyms
1
8.9
A cloth or leather piece that fits over the lower leg and ankle to keep out mud and snow
A piece of clothing that covers the lower leg from the knee to the ankle
Surface Forms
Etymology
Spats (shoe covers) comes from the longer word spatterdash, from spatter meaning 'to splash'. They were made to stop mud and water from splashing on your shoes, which is why spats protect the lower leg and shoe.