Etymology From Middle English squatten, from Old French esquatir, escatir (“compress, press down, lay flat, crush”), from es- (“ex-”) + quatir (“press down, flatten”), from Vulgar Latin *coactire (“press together, force”), from Latin coāctus, perfect passive participle of cōgō (“force together, compress”). The sense “nothing” is synchronically analyzable as a clipping of diddly-squat, although diachronically the direction of derivation is uncertain.
1
Relatively short or low, and thick or broad.
The SQUILL-INSECT. […] So called from ſome ſimilitude to the Squill-fiſh: chiefly, in having a long Body cover'd with a Cruſt compoſed of ſeveral Rings or Plates. The Head is broad and ſquat. He hath a pair of notable ſharp Fangs before, both hooked inward like a Bulls horns.1681, Nehemiah Grew, “Of Creeping Insects [part I, section VII, chapter III]”, in Musæum Regalis Societatis. Or a Catalogue & Description of the Natural and Artificial Rarities Belonging to the Royal Society and Preserved at Gresham College. … Whereunto is Subjoyned the Comparative Anatomy of Stomachs and Guts, London: Printed by W. Rawlins, for the Author, →OCLC, page 176:
What in the midst lay but the Tower itself? / The round squat turret, blind as the fool's heart, / Built of round stone, without a counterpart / In the whole world. […]1855, Robert Browning, “Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came”, in Men and Women, London: Chapman & Hall, →OCLC, stanza XXXI:
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On the gentle slopes there are farms, ancient and rocky, with squat, moss-coated cottages brooding eternally over old New England secrets in the lee of great ledges […]1927 March, H[oward] P[hillips] Lovecraft, “The Colour Out of Space”, in Amazing Stories, New York, N.Y.: Experimenter Publishing, published September 1927, →ISSN:
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Sitting on one's heels; sitting close to the ground; cowering or crouching.
[H]im there they found, / Squat like a toad, cloſe at the ear of Eve, / Aſſaying by his deviliſh art to reach / The organs of her fancy', and with them forge / Illuſions as he liſt, phantaſms and dreams, […]1667, John Milton, “Book I”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC, lines 799–803:
squat
noun
Etymology From Middle English squatten, from Old French esquatir, escatir (“compress, press down, lay flat, crush”), from es- (“ex-”) + quatir (“press down, flatten”), from Vulgar Latin *coactire (“press together, force”), from Latin coāctus, perfect passive participle of cōgō (“force together, compress”). The sense “nothing” is synchronically analyzable as a clipping of diddly-squat, although diachronically the direction of derivation is uncertain.
A position assumed by bending deeply at the knees while resting on one's feet.
Sit in a squat, with your feet a comfortable distance apart.2006, Yael Calhoun, Matthew R. Calhoun, Create a Yoga Practice for Kids: Fun, Flexibility, and Focus, Santa Fe, N.M.: Sunstone Press, →ISBN, page 72:
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Exercise, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Any of various modes of callisthenic exercises performed by moving the body and bending at least one knee.
3
Exercise, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports, Weightlifting A specific exercise in weightlifting performed by bending deeply at the knees and then rising (back squat), especially with a barbell resting across the shoulders (barbell back squat).
The king of all quad exercises, and arguably the best single-weight resistance exercise, is the squat.2001, Robert Wolff, Robert Wolff's Book of Great Workouts: Everything You Need to Know to Vary Your Routine and Keep You Motivated, Lincolnwood and Chicago, Ill.: Contemporary Books, →ISBN, pages 58–59:
Before we can discuss ass-to-grass squats, or ATG squats for short, we must first establish some knowledge about squats in general. […] Now, lift the bar off the squat rack rests and step away from any part of the rack that may inhibit a full range of motion.2021 September 9, “Should You Squat Ass-to-Grass? The Debate is Over”, in Steel Supplements:
4
A building occupied without permission, as practiced by a squatter.
Your dumb self can't appreciate the freedom in my thought / The weak sense of autonomy when I'm flipping in my squat1996, “Born To Die”, in Squatta's Paradise, performed by Choking Victim, Whattsa Matta U Rekidz:
"Keeping your friends warm and dry, that doesn't happen here. If you want to spend a night in a squat, it's all political to get in." Lately, as buildings have filled and become stringent about new admissions, much of the squatters' "My house is your house" rhetoric has become hollow.1996 July 8, Chris Smith, “Live free or die”, in New York, New York, N.Y.: New York Magazine Co., →ISSN, page 36:
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A place of concealment in which a hare spends time when inactive, especially during the day; a form.
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A toilet used by squatting as opposed to sitting; a squat toilet.
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Canada, US, Abbreviation, Clipping, Slang Clipping of diddly-squat; something of no value.
I know squat about nuclear physics.
We didn't ask for rent, but we assumed they'd help around the house. But they don't do squat.2003 May 6, “Dear Dotti: America's Most Outspoken Advice Columnist”, in Weekly World News, volume 24, number 34, New York, N.Y.: American Media, →ISSN, page 23:
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"Joke's on you. They're used to me mostly talking about superficial stuff. Nobody's going to notice squat."2022 October 19, Dan Shive, El Goonish Shive (webcomic), Comic for Wednesday, Oct 19, 2022:
A Mineral, very ponderous, and probably holding Tin. […] 'Twas part of a Squat, at Hewas-Work; not far from Polgouth, in St. Stephen's Liberty, Cornwall.1728, J[ohn] Woodward, “Earths and Earthy Substances”, in A Catalogue of the Additional English Native Fossils, in the Collection of J. Woodward M.D., tome II, London: […] F[rancis] Fayram, […]; J[ohn] Senex, […]; and J. Osborn and T[homas] Longman, […], →OCLC, page 23:
bruises, and squats, and falls, which often kill others1652, George Herbert, “Treatise of Temperance and Sobriety”, in Herbert's Remains, Or, Sundry Pieces Of that sweet Singer of the Temple:
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Dentistry, Medicine, SciencesSlang A dental practice set up from scratch instead of joining an existing one.
[…] needs many patients to be viable — definitely not for the first six months of a squat. Ron mentioned that many graduates ask representatives for advice regarding squats and those he has not deterred have done well […]1988, Dental Practice, volume 26, page 30:
squat
verb
Etymology From Middle English squatten, from Old French esquatir, escatir (“compress, press down, lay flat, crush”), from es- (“ex-”) + quatir (“press down, flatten”), from Vulgar Latin *coactire (“press together, force”), from Latin coāctus, perfect passive participle of cōgō (“force together, compress”). The sense “nothing” is synchronically analyzable as a clipping of diddly-squat, although diachronically the direction of derivation is uncertain.
To bend deeply at the knees while resting on one's feet.
He was not going to squat henlike on his place as the cockies around him did.1901, Miles Franklin, “An Introduction to ’Possum Gully”, in My Brilliant Career, Edinburgh; London: William Blackwood and Sons, →OCLC, page 10:
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Exercise, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports To perform one or more callisthenic exercises by moving the body and bending at least one knee.
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Exercise, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports, Weightlifting To exercise by bending deeply at the knees and then rising, while bearing weight across the shoulders or upper back.
For those who are having, or have had, trouble squatting we suggest learning how to squat by performing the front squat […] The front squat allows you almost no alternative but to perform the exercise correctly.1994, Kurt Brungardt, Mike Brungardt, Brett Brungardt, The Complete Book of Butt and Legs, New York, N.Y.: Villard Books, →ISBN, page 161:
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To occupy or reside in a place without the permission of the owner.
Huddled together in loathsome files, they squat there over night, or until an inquisitive policeman breaks up the congregation with his club, which in Mulberry Street has always free swing.1890, Jacob A[ugust] Riis, “A Raid on the Stale-beer Dives”, in How the Other Half Lives: Studies among the Tenements of New York, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, →OCLC, page 77:
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To sit close to the ground; to stoop, or lie close to the ground, for example to escape observation.
"But there seemed to be little satisfaction got out of this run; every moment the hare squatted, and the hounds lost the scent time after time."1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 76:
The old homepage for L2TP, www.l2tpd.org, has been squatted by a domain squatter. A malicious person could reinstate this domain with malicious code on it.2006, Paul Wouters, Ken Bantoft, Building and Integrating Virtual Private Networks with Openswan:
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Slang To retire a modeling kit or group of modeling kits.
I can't believe they squatted my favorite faction!