What is "rat"

Rat \Rat\ (r[a^]t), n. [AS. r[ae]t; akin to D. rat, OHG. rato, ratta, G. ratte, ratze, OLG. ratta, LG. & Dan. rotte, Sw. r[*a]tta, F. rat, Ir. & Gael radan, Armor. raz, of unknown origin. Cf. Raccoon.]

1. (Zo["o]l.) One of several species of small rodents of the genus Rattus (formerly included in Mus) and allied genera, of the family Muridae, distinguished from mice primarily by being larger. They infest houses, stores, and ships, especially the Norway rat, also called brown rat, ( Rattus norvegicus formerly Mus decumanus), the black rat ( Rattus rattus formerly Mus rattus), and the roof rat (formerly Mus Alexandrinus, now included in Rattus rattus). These were introduced into America from the Old World. The white rat used most commonly in laboratories is primarily a strain derived from Rattus rattus.

2. A round and tapering mass of hair, or similar material, used by women to support the puffs and rolls of their natural hair. [Local, U.S.]

3. One who deserts his party or associates; hence, in the trades, one who works for lower wages than those prescribed by a trades union. [Cant] Note: ``It so chanced that, not long after the accession of the house of Hanover, some of the brown, that is the German or Norway, rats, were first brought over to this country (in some timber as is said); and being much stronger than the black, or, till then, the common, rats, they in many places quite extirpated the latter. The word (both the noun and the verb to rat) was first, as we have seen, leveled at the converts to the government of George the First, but has by degrees obtained a wider meaning, and come to be applied to any sudden and mercenary change in politics.'' --Lord Mahon. Bamboo rat (Zo["o]l.), any Indian rodent of the genus Rhizomys. Beaver rat, Coast rat. (Zo["o]l.) See under Beaver and Coast. Blind rat (Zo["o]l.), the mole rat. Cotton rat (Zo["o]l.), a long-haired rat ( Sigmodon hispidus), native of the Southern United States and Mexico. It makes its nest of cotton and is often injurious to the crop. Ground rat. See Ground Pig, under Ground. Hedgehog rat. See under Hedgehog. Kangaroo rat (Zo["o]l.), the potoroo. Norway rat (Zo["o]l.), the common brown rat. See Rat. Pouched rat. (Zo["o]l.)

   1. See Pocket Gopher, under Pocket.

   2. Any African rodent of the genus Cricetomys.

      Rat Indians (Ethnol.), a tribe of Indians dwelling near Fort Ukon, Alaska. They belong to the Athabascan stock.

      Rat mole. (Zo["o]l.) See Mole rat, under Mole.

      Rat pit, an inclosed space into which rats are put to be killed by a dog for sport.

      Rat snake (Zo["o]l.), a large colubrine snake ( Ptyas mucosus) very common in India and Ceylon. It enters dwellings, and destroys rats, chickens, etc.

      Spiny rat (Zo["o]l.), any South American rodent of the genus Echinomys.

      To smell a rat. See under Smell.

      Wood rat (Zo["o]l.), any American rat of the genus Neotoma, especially Neotoma Floridana, common in the Southern United States. Its feet and belly are white.

Rat \Rat\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Ratted; p. pr. & vb. n. Ratting.]

1. In English politics, to desert one's party from interested motives; to forsake one's associates for one's own advantage; in the trades, to work for less wages, or on other conditions, than those established by a trades union.

   Coleridge . . . incurred the reproach of having ratted, solely by his inability to follow the friends of his early days.
   --De Quincey.

2. To catch or kill rats.

   2. To be an informer (against an associate); to inform (on an associate); to squeal; -- used commonly in the phrase to rat on.

1812, "to desert one's party; 1864 as "to catch rats;" 1910 as "to peach on, inform on, behave dishonestly toward;" from rat (n.). Related: Ratted; ratting.

late Old English ræt "rat," of uncertain origin. Similar words are found in Celtic (Gaelic radan), Romanic (Italian ratto, Spanish rata, French rat) and Germanic (Old Saxon ratta; Dutch rat; German Ratte, dialectal Ratz; Swedish råtta, Danish rotte) languages, but connection is uncertain and origin unknown. In all this it is very much like cat.\n

\nPerhaps from Vulgar Latin *rattus, but Weekley thinks this is of Germanic origin, "the animal having come from the East with the race-migrations" and the word passing thence to the Romanic languages. American Heritage and Tucker connect Old English ræt to Latin rodere and thus PIE *red- "to scrape, scratch, gnaw," source of rodent (q.v.). Klein says there is no such connection and suggests a possible cognate in Greek rhine "file, rasp." Weekley connects them with a question mark and Barnhart writes, "the relationship to each other of the Germanic, Romance, and Celtic words for rat is uncertain." OED says "probable" the rat word spread from Germanic to Romanic, but takes no position on ultimate origin.\n\nRATS. Of these there are the following kinds: a black rat and a grey rat, a py-rat and a cu-rat.

["Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue," Grose, 1788]

n. (context zoology English) A medium-sized rodent belonging to the genus ''Rattus''. vb. 1 (context usually with “on” or “out” English) To betray someone and tell their secret to an authority or an enemy; to turn someone in, bewray. 2 (context of a dog, etc. English) To kill rats.

1. v. desert one's party or group of friends, for example, for one's personal advantage

2. employ scabs or strike breakers in

3. take the place of work of someone on strike [syn: scab, blackleg]

4. give (hair) the appearance of being fuller by using a rat

5. catch rats, especially with dogs

6. give away information about somebody; "He told on his classmate who had cheated on the exam" [syn: denounce, tell on, betray, give away, grass, shit, shop, snitch, stag]

7. [also: ratting, ratted]

1. n. any of various long-tailed rodents similar to but larger than a mouse

2. someone who works (or provides workers) during a strike [syn: scab, strikebreaker, blackleg]

3. a person who is deemed to be despicable or contemptible; "only a rotter would do that"; "kill the rat"; "throw the bum out"; "you cowardly little pukes!"; "the British call a contemptible person a `git'" [syn: rotter, dirty dog, skunk, stinker, stinkpot, bum, puke, crumb, lowlife, scum bag, so-and-so, git]

4. one who reveals confidential information in return for money [syn: informer, betrayer, squealer, blabber]

5. a pad (usually made of hair) worn as part of a woman's coiffure

6. [also: ratting, ratted]

The Rat (子) is one of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. The Year of the Rat is associated with the Earthly Branch symbol 子. Year of the Rat is the leap year.

A rat is a rodent of the genus Rattus. Rat may also mean similar species of rodent, especially those of the family Muridae

Rat or Rats may also refer to:

Rat Subterranean News, New York's second major underground newspaper, was created in March 1968, primarily by editor Jeff Shero, Alice Embree and Gary Thiher, who moved up from Austin, Texas, where they had been involved in The Rag.

"Rat" is a science fiction short story by James Patrick Kelly. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Short Story 1987, and the Nebula Award for Best Short Story in 1986. Also nominated for Lucas Poll Award category for best short story and also nominated for SF Chronicle Award for the same category. In 1986 "Rat" was published in Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction

Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus. Many members of other rodent genera and families are also referred to as rats, and share many characteristics with true rats.

Rats are typically distinguished from mice by their size. Generally, when someone discovers a large muroid rodent, its common name includes the term rat, while if it is smaller, the name includes the term mouse. The muroid family is broad and complex, and the common terms rat and mouse are not taxonomically specific. Scientifically, the terms are not confined to members of the Rattus and Mus genera, for example, the pack rat and cotton mouse.

Rat was the preferred nickname of the musician Gareth Pring (born 8 November 1970, Sedgley, West Midlands)

Rat is most famous for being the guitarist in the early 1990s indie punk band, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, he was a founding member of the band, and stayed in situ from 1987 to 1995. Ned's Atomic Dustbin had a string of hit singles between 1990 and 1995, among them, "Grey Cell Green" and "Kill Your Television" and "Not Sleeping Around". Shortly after the success of Godfodder, Rat said, "people ask me all the time if I consider myself successful now, or need a No. 1 album before I feel I've validated myself. As long as I'm happy, I don't care. As soon as you start worrying too much about the numbers, you're bound to get miserable."

On Neds' sound, Rat elaborates, "We wanted to do a lot of things musically, one of which was to create something that was the antithesis to dance music. I think that by having two basses, our music sounds a lot heavier than other bands that only have one, and we're totally into that. Whether that was our intent when we formed the group, I can't honestly say."

In a 1992 interview, in response to the grebo label, ("In English schoolyard lingo, "grebo" is the equivalent of "dork." In pop jargon, it refers to a long-haired, smelly person.") Rat says, ""I am a dork, but at least I don't smell. Maybe in the beginning, it was meant to be derogatory, but I don't think 'grebo' has bad connotations anymore."" He further states, "We toured Japan before, and it was brilliant because the kids went mad. The only way we could communicate with them was through our music, but they understood everything we were saying, which is how music should be. It should be so powerful that you don't need a translator, you know?"

Although Rat co-wrote and played on Ned's Atomic Dustbin's final album, Brainbloodvolume, he declined to play on their 1995 North American tour.

After the Ned's split, he formed a new band Groundswell with singer Jonn Penney (also formerly of Ned's Atomic Dustbin), and together they wrote a number of songs together. However, he left the band after only a couple of live performances. Groundswell later reunited for a performance in 2000.

Along with original bassist Matt Cheslin, Rat did not partake in the Ned's Atomic Dustbin reunion from 2000 – 2007. Both have now rejoined the band for a show in 2008 and shows in December 2009.

The Rât is a left tributary of the river Mureș in Transylvania, Romania. It discharges into the Mureș in Ciumbrud.

Rat is a 2000 Irish- British- American comedy film directed by Steve Barron and starring Imelda Staunton and Pete Postlethwaite. The film focuses on the transformation of a working-class man into a rat and how his family copes with the startling change. The film's scenario is partly based on Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis.