Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

batten down the hatches

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.56 in modern English

Syllables
bat-ten -down the hatch-es
IPA
37
Scrabble Score
20
Letters
4
Syllables
11
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To prepare for trouble.

Example Sentences

Etymology

From the practice aboard a ship of sealing hatches to prevent water getting below-decks in a storm by using covers secured by strips of material, called battens, firmly attached to the frame of the hatch opening.

Inflected Forms

battens down the hatches (present, singular) battening down the hatches (participle, present) battened down the hatches (participle, past) battened down the hatches (past)

Phrases

kitty bar the door

Frequently Paired Words

kitty bar the door

Questions

What does batten down the hatches mean?
To prepare for trouble.
Where does batten down the hatches come from?
From the practice aboard a ship of sealing hatches to prevent water getting below-decks in a storm by using covers secured by strips of material, called battens, firmly attached to the frame of the hatch opening.

How to pronounce batten down the hatches

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “batten down the hatches”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “batten down the hatches”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “batten down the hatches” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.