lat meaning (rare): definition, etymology and quotations

lat

noun

UK /lɑːt/

Etymology Borrowed from Hindi लाट (lāṭ, “pillar; minaret; staff, club”), लाठ (lāṭh, “long staff; cudgel”), etc.

Engineering, Government, Military, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Politics, Tools, War, Weaponry Rare A staff, particularly one of an Indian kind.

Architecture A monumental pillar, particularly the Buddhist columns erected in East India.

A high pillar of stone called Bheem-lat, or the Tealee, or oilman's lat or staff.1801, “Miscellaneous Tracts”, in Asiatic Annual Register, page 313:

lat

noun

Etymology Clipping of latrine.

UK, Plural normally, Slang A latrine: a rudimentary or military facility for urination and defecation.

At Salisbury Plain and Camberley in 1909/10 I learnt a number of camping expressions like... lats (latrines).1927, William Edward Collinson, Contemporary English, page 92:
Other synonyms [sc. for lavatories] are rears, lats... and dubs.1940, M. Marples, Public School Slang, page 112:

lat

noun

US /lɑt/

Etymology Borrowed from Latvian lats, a clipping of Latvija (“Latvia”).

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Numismatics Historical The gold-backed monetary unit of Latvia from August 1922 until April 1941, when it was replaced by the Soviet ruble; it was typically pegged at about 25 to the British pound.

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Numismatics Historical The floating fiat monetary unit of Latvia from 1992 until January 2014, when it was replaced by the euro.

A coin or bill of either currency.

Synonyms: lats
Hyponyms: santim

lat

noun

Etymology Clipping of latissimus.

Plural normally, Slang A latissimus dorsi muscle.

Derived terms: imaginary lat syndrome, invisible lat syndrome, lat pulldown

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.