rat
rat
Pronunciation
/ræːt/.
/ræːt/
/r/ - "r" as in "red"
/æː/ - "a" as in "cat" (lengthened slightly)
/t/ - "t" as in "top"
Word Form Variations
As a Noun:
Singular: rat (e.g., "There was a rat in the attic.")
Plural: rats (e.g., "The city is full of rats.")
As a Verb:
Base form: rat (e.g., "Don't rat on your friends.")
Third-person singular present: rats (e.g., "He rats on anyone who breaks the rules.")
Present participle: ratting (e.g., "He's always ratting out his teammates.")
Past tense/Past participle: ratted (e.g., "She ratted him out to the police." or "He had ratted on them before.")
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Rat (Noun)
Definition: A medium-sized, long-tailed rodent, typically larger than a mouse, known for its adaptability, prolific breeding, and often regarded as a pest.
Synonyms: Rodent, vermin, pest.
Antonyms: (No direct antonyms, as it refers to a specific animal)
Definition: (Informal, derogatory) A person who betrays or informs on others, especially those they are associated with; a turncoat or informer.
Synonyms: Traitor, snitch, informant, betrayer, double-crosser, renegade, stool pigeon, fink.
Antonyms: Loyal person, confidant, ally, supporter, patriot.
Definition: (Slang) A person who frequently visits or is dedicated to a specific place or activity (often used in compounds like "gym rat" or "mall rat").
Synonyms: Enthusiast, habitué, regular, devotee.
Antonyms: Novice, infrequent visitor, casual participant.
Rat (Verb)
Definition: To betray someone by informing on their secret or illicit activities to an authority figure.
Synonyms: Snitch, squeal, inform, tell on, fink, blab, grass (British slang).
Antonyms: Conceal, protect, keep quiet, cover up, defend.
Definition: (Of hair) To tease or backcomb hair to create volume and thickness.
Synonyms: Tease, backcomb, fluff.
Antonyms: Smooth, flatten, comb down.
Rat (Adjective - used in "ratty")
Definition: (Of a place or object) Infested with or resembling rats; dirty, dilapidated, or in poor condition.
Synonyms: Shabby, rundown, decrepit, squalid, unkempt, scruffy.
Antonyms: Pristine, clean, well-maintained, spick-and-span, tidy.
Definition: (Of a person's mood or behavior) Irritable, bad-tempered, or feeling annoyed.
Synonyms: Grumpy, testy, irritable, peevish, ill-tempered, cross.
Antonyms: Cheerful, amiable, good-natured, pleasant, affable.
Examples of Use
Book: "The two-bit players, the rat finks, the snitches – they all thought they were going to get something out of it." (James Ellroy, L.A. Confidential, 1990)
Newspaper: "City officials are deploying new bait stations in an ongoing effort to combat the growing rat population." (The New York Times)
Online Publication: "Why the 'gym rat' stereotype needs to die, and how to embrace a healthier fitness journey." (Self.com)
Entertainment Medium (Film): "You rat! You betrayed us all for a few lousy bucks!" (The Departed, 2006)
Entertainment Medium (TV Show): "He promised he wouldn't rat me out, but then the principal called my parents." (Stranger Things, July 2016)
General Public Discourse: "I can't believe he would rat on his own brother like that, it's just not right."
General Public Discourse: "The local restaurant received a poor health inspection after a customer reported seeing a rat in the dining area."
Online Publication: "Experts warn that climate change could lead to a global surge in rat populations." (The Guardian)
Entertainment Medium (Song Lyrics): "Despite all my rage, I am still just a rat in a cage." (The Smashing Pumpkins, "Bullet with Butterfly Wings", 1995)
Book: "The rat race was relentless, and she felt herself losing more of her soul with each passing day." (Jodi Picoult, My Sister's Keeper, 2004)
10 Quotes Using Rat
"The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat." (Lily Tomlin)
"You learned the two greatest things in life: never rat on your friends, and always keep your mouth shut." (Robert De Niro, A Bronx Tale)
"By gnawing through a dike, even a rat may drown a nation." (Edmund Burke)
"Beware of driving men to desperation. Even a cornered rat is dangerous." (Winston Churchill)
"Nobody near me here, but rats, and they are fine stealthy secret fellows." (Charles Dickens, The Old Curiosity Shop)
"Despite all my rage, I am still just a rat in a cage." (Billy Corgan, Smashing Pumpkins, "Bullet with Butterfly Wings")
"Hating people is like burning down your own house to get rid of a rat." (Harry Emerson Fosdick)
"Fate is not an eagle, it creeps like a rat." (Elizabeth Bowen)
"How now? A rat?" (William Shakespeare, Hamlet)
"When the water reaches the upper level, follow the rats." (Claude A. Swanson)
Etymology
The word "rat" in English has a long and somewhat mysterious history, but we can trace its journey back quite far.
Its first known use, referring to the animal, appears in late Old English (before 1150 AD) as "rætt."
The interesting thing about "rat" is that very similar words for this animal show up in many different European languages, including Germanic languages (like Dutch "rat" and German "Ratte"), Romance languages (like Italian "ratto" and French "rat"), and Celtic languages (like Gaelic "radan"). This makes it tricky to pinpoint the exact, single origin of the word.
One popular theory is that it came from Proto-Germanic (the ancestor of Germanic languages) as something like "rattaz" or "rattō." From there, it likely spread to other languages.
Another idea is that the word might ultimately come from an even older root, a Proto-Indo-European word like "*Hreh₃d-" meaning "to scrape, scratch, or gnaw." This makes sense, given how rats behave! However, this connection isn't completely certain, and some experts believe there's no direct link to this root.
Over time, the meaning of "rat" expanded beyond just the animal. By the 12th century, it was used in surnames for people who were thought to resemble rats in some way. The more negative sense of "a person who betrays others" (like a "snitch" or "informant") appeared much later, around the 1620s. This meaning likely came from the old belief that rats abandon a ship when it's about to sink – meaning they desert a losing cause.
Phrases + Idioms Containing Rat
Here's a list of phrases and idioms using "rat":
Smell a rat: To suspect that something is wrong or that someone is being deceitful.
Rat race: A fiercely competitive, exhausting struggle for wealth or power.
Rat out (on) someone: To betray someone by informing on them to an authority.
Look like a drowned rat: To look extremely wet and disheveled.
Like rats deserting a sinking ship: To abandon a failing enterprise or group.
Pack rat: A person who compulsively hoards things.
Gym rat: Someone who spends a lot of time at the gym.
Mall rat: A young person who spends a lot of time loitering in shopping malls.
Rat on someone: To inform on someone's misdeeds.
Rat poison: A substance used to kill rats.
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of rat from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
