Sat

UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations'SAT': UK: /ˌɛseɪˈtiː/, US: /'sæt/; 'sat': /ˈsæt/

US:USA pronunciation: IPAUSA pronunciation: IPA/sæt/

US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(v. sat; n. sut)


From the verb sit: (⇒ conjugate)
sat is: ⓘClick the infinitive to see all available inflections
v past
v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
sat1 /sæt/USA pronunciation   v. 
  1. a pt. and pp. of sit.

SAT, 
  1. [Trademark.]Scholastic Aptitude Test.

Sat.,  an abbreviation of:
  1. Saturday.

-sat-, root. 
    1. -sat- comes from Latin, where it has the meaning "full, enough, sufficient.'' This meaning is found in such words as: dissatisfaction, dissatisfy, insatiable, sate, satiated, satire, satisfaction, satisfy, saturate, unsatisfied.

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
sit1 /sɪt/USA pronunciation   v., sat/sæt/USA pronunciation  sat, sit•ting. 
v. 
  1. to rest with the body supported by one's buttocks or thighs;
    be seated:[no object]I was sitting at my desk when the phone rang.
  2. to (cause to) lower the body into a position of rest supported by one's buttocks or thighs: [no object;
    (~ + down)]    Please sit (down); I'll be back in a minute.[~ + object (+ down)]sat the child (down) on the sofa.
  3. to be located or situated;
    lie or rest:[no object]The house sits on a cliff.
  4. [no object] to place oneself in position for an artist, etc.;
    pose.
  5. to remain quiet:[no object]Let the matter sit.
  6. Animal Behavior[no object] (of a bird) to cover eggs with the body for hatching;
    brood.
  7. to fit or hang, such as a garment:[no object]That shirt doesn't sit well on him.
  8. to have an official position, such as a legislator or judge:[no object;often: ~ + on + object]She sits on the committee.
  9. to hold a session:[no object]The court sits in judgment.
  10. (used after a word or root) to take care of (the specified thing) like a baby-sitter:to house-sit (= to live in another's house while the owners are away); to plant-sit (= to take care of another's plants while the owners are away).
  11. to be accepted in the way indicated:[no object]His answer didn't sit right with us.
  12. Informal Terms to be acceptable to the stomach:[no object]My breakfast didn't sit too well.
  13. to provide seating accommodations;
    seat:[~ + object;no passive]Our table only sits six people.
  14. Informal Terms to baby-sit:[no object]She used to sit for us when our daughter was a baby.
  15. sit around, [no object;
    usually: ~ + around + verb-ing]     to do nothing:The workers were sitting around ignoring their work.
  16. sit in (on), [~ + in (+ on + object)] to be a spectator at (some event or circumstance):I'd like permission to sit in on your class.
  17. sit on or upon, [~ + on/upon + object]
    • to inquire into or deliberate over:A coroner's jury sat on the case.
    • to put off for a time;
      postpone.
    • Informal Termsto check;
      squelch:to sit on nasty rumors.
  18. sit out:
    • [~ + out + object] to stay to the end of:He sat out the whole movie in silence.
    • to stay, wait, or endure longer than: [~ + out + object]to sit out one's rivals.[~ + object + out]to sit them out.
    • to keep one's seat during (a dance, etc.);
      fail to participate in (an activity): [~ + out + object]I think I'll sit out the next dance.[~ + object + out]I'll have to sit this one out; I'm a little tired.
  19. sit up:
    • to (cause to) rise from a lying or reclining position to a sitting position: [no object]Sit up straight and answer me.[~ + object + up]The nurse sat him up in his bed.
    • [no object;
      often: ~ + up + verb-ing]       to be awake and active during one's usual sleep time:to sit up all night playing solitaire.
    • [no object] to become interested;
      take notice:This will make them sit up and notice.
Idioms
  1. Idioms sit on one's hands:
    • to fail to applaud.
    • to fail to take proper or necessary action.
  2. Idioms sit tight, [no object] to take no action;
    wait:Sit tight, and when I give you the signal, then move.

sit•ter, n. [countable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
sat1  (sat),USA pronunciation v. 
  1. a pt. and pp. of sit. 

sat2  (sut),USA pronunciation n. [Hinduism.]
  1. (in Vedic mythology) the realm of existence, populated by people and gods. Cf. Asat. 
  2. reality. Cf. Sat-cit-ananda. 
  • Sanskrit: literally, being

SAT, 
  1. [Trademark.]college admissions tests sponsored by the College Entrance Examination Board: the SAT I measures mathematical and verbal reasoning skills, and the SAT II measures knowledge in specific subject areas.

Sat., 
    1. Saturday.
    2. AstronomySaturn.

sat., 
    1. saturate.
    2. saturated.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
sit1  (sit),USA pronunciation v., sat or (Archaic) sate;
sat or (Archaic) sit•ten;
sit•ting. 
v.i. 
  1. to rest with the body supported by the buttocks or thighs;
    be seated.
  2. to be located or situated:The house sits well up on the slope.
  3. to rest or lie (usually fol. by on or upon):An aura of greatness sits easily upon him.
  4. to place oneself in position for an artist, photographer, etc.;
    pose:to sit for a portrait.
  5. to remain quiet or inactive:They let the matter sit.
  6. Animal Behavior(of a bird) to perch or roost.
  7. Animal Behavior(of a hen) to cover eggs to hatch them;
    brood.
  8. to fit, rest, or hang, as a garment:The jacket sits well on your shoulders.
  9. to occupy a place or have a seat in an official assembly or in an official capacity, as a legislator, judge, or bishop.
  10. to be convened or in session, as an assembly.
  11. to act as a baby-sitter.
  12. Meteorology(of wind) to blow from the indicated direction:The wind sits in the west tonight.
  13. to be accepted or considered in the way indicated:Something about his looks just didn't sit right with me.
  14. Informal Termsto be acceptable to the stomach:Something I ate for breakfast didn't sit too well.

v.t. 
  1. to cause to sit;
    seat (often fol. by down):Sit yourself down. He sat me near him.
  2. to sit astride or keep one's seat on (a horse or other animal):She sits her horse gracefully.
  3. to provide seating accommodations or seating room for;
    seat:Our dining-room table only sits six people.
  4. Informal Termsto serve as baby-sitter for:A neighbor can sit the children while you go out.
  5. sit down:
    • to take a seat.
    • to descend to a sitting position;
      alight.
    • to take up a position, as to encamp or besiege:The military forces sat down at the approaches to the city.
  6. sit in:
    • to attend or take part as a visitor or temporary participant:to sit in at a bridge game; to sit in for the band's regular pianist.
    • to take part in a sit-in.
  7. sit in on, to be a spectator, observer, or visitor at:to sit in on classes.
  8. sit on or upon:
    • to inquire into or deliberate over:A coroner's jury was called to sit on the case.
    • [Informal.]to suppress;
      silence:They sat on the bad news as long as they could.
    • Informal Termsto check or rebuke;
      squelch:I'll sit on him if he tries to interrupt me.
  9. Idioms sit on one's hands:
    • Idiomsto fail to applaud.
    • Idiomsto fail to take appropriate action.
  10. sit out:
    • to stay to the end of:Though bored, we sat out the play.
    • to surpass in endurance:He sat out his tormentors.
    • to keep one's seat during (a dance, competition, etc.);
      fail to participate in:We sat out all the Latin-American numbers.
  11. Informal Terms sit pretty, to be in a comfortable situation:He's been sitting pretty ever since he got that new job.
  12. sit tight, to bide one's time;
    take no action:I'm going to sit tight till I hear from you.
  13. sit up:
    • to rise from a supine to a sitting position.
    • to delay the hour of retiring beyond the usual time.
    • to sit upright;
      hold oneself erect.
    • [Informal.]to become interested or astonished:We all sat up when the holiday was announced.
  • bef. 900; Middle English sitten, Old English sittan; cognate with Dutch zitten, German sitzen, Old Norse sitja; akin to Gothic sitan, Latin sedēre, Greek hézesthai (base hed-); compare set, sedate, cathedral, nest
    10. meet. assemble. convene. gather..
    Cf. set. 
sit2  (sit),USA pronunciation v. 
  1. Drugs(in prescriptions) may it be.
  • Latin

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
sat /sæt/ vb
  1. the past tense and past participle of sit
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
Sat. abbreviation for
  1. Saturday
  2. Saturn
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
sit /sɪt/ vb (sits, sitting, sat) (mainly intr)
  1. (also tr; when intr, often followed by down, in, or on) to adopt or rest in a posture in which the body is supported on the buttocks and thighs and the torso is more or less upright: to sit on a chair, sit a horse
  2. (transitive) to cause to adopt such a posture
  3. (of an animal) to adopt or rest in a posture with the hindquarters lowered to the ground
  4. (of a bird) to perch or roost
  5. (of a hen or other bird) to cover eggs to hatch them; brood
  6. to be situated or located
  7. (of the wind) to blow from the direction specified
  8. to adopt and maintain a posture for one's portrait to be painted, etc
  9. to occupy or be entitled to a seat in some official capacity, as a judge, elected representative, etc
  10. (of a deliberative body) to be convened or in session
  11. to remain inactive or unused: his car sat in the garage for a year
  12. (of a garment) to fit or hang as specified: that dress sits well on you
  13. to weigh, rest, or lie as specified: greatness sits easily on him
  14. (transitive) chiefly Brit to take (an examination): he's sitting his bar finals
  15. (usually followed by for) chiefly Brit to be a candidate (for a qualification): he's sitting for a BA
  16. (intransitive; in combination) to look after a specified person or thing for someone else: granny-sit
  17. (transitive) to have seating capacity for
  18. sit tight ⇒
    • to wait patiently; bide one's time
    • to maintain one's position, stand, or opinion firmly
Etymology: Old English sittan; related to Old Norse sitja, Gothic sitan, Old High German sizzen, Latin sedēre to sit, Sanskrit sīdati he sits
'Sat' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
baby-sit - funicular - house-sit - knee - pathetic - resit - Rump Parliament - sartorius - Sat. - sat nav - seed - sit - sit out - suttee - unzip - ananda - Asat - astride - blare - blow - bull - chin - cit - clean - cockfight chair - cogitative - communications satellite - Comsat - dip - direct broadcast satellite - Earth Resources Technology Satellite - face - fan - freeze - front - Galilean satellites - Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite - give - goer - goo-goo eyes - hand - heave - Holy Saturday - housesit - hunter-killer satellite - Intelsat - International Telecommunications Satellite Organization - Landsat - lit de justice - Marisat

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