Idioms for bat

Origin of bat

1
1175–1225; (noun) Middle English bat, bot, batte, Old English batt, perhaps < Celtic; compare Irish, Scots Gaelic bat, bata staff, cudgel; (v.) Middle English batten, partly from the noun, partly < Old French batre; see batter1

British Dictionary definitions for right off the bat (1 of 3)

bat 1
/ (bæt) /

noun

verb bats, batting or batted

(tr) to strike with or as if with a bat
(intr) sport (of a player or a team) to take a turn at batting
See also bat around

Word Origin for bat

Old English batt club, probably of Celtic origin; compare Gaelic bat, Russian bat

British Dictionary definitions for right off the bat (2 of 3)

bat 2
/ (bæt) /

noun

any placental mammal of the order Chiroptera, being a nocturnal mouselike animal flying with a pair of membranous wings (patagia). The group is divided into the Megachiroptera (fruit bats) and Microchiroptera (insectivorous bats) Related adjective: chiropteran
slang an irritating or eccentric woman (esp in the phrase old bat)
blind as a bat having extremely poor eyesight
have bats in the belfry or have bats in one's belfry informal to be mad or eccentric; have strange ideas
like a bat out of hell slang very quickly

Derived forms of bat

batlike, adjective

Word Origin for bat

C14 bakke, probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse ledhrblaka leather-flapper, Swedish dialect natt-batta night bat

British Dictionary definitions for right off the bat (3 of 3)

bat 3
/ (bæt) /

verb bats, batting or batted (tr)

to wink or flutter (one's eyelids)
not bat an eye or not bat an eyelid informal to show no surprise or concern

Word Origin for bat

C17: probably a variant of bate ²

Idioms and Phrases with right off the bat (1 of 2)

right off the bat

Instantly, immediately, as in I can't tell you how many right off the bat, but I can find out. This term alludes to a baseball being hit by a bat. [First half of 1900s]

Idioms and Phrases with right off the bat (2 of 2)

bat