Lindsay McMahon
"The English Adventurer"

Are you a “hat” person?

Do you hear people using the word “hat” often in English?

Though you may or may not be a hat lover, there are many phrases that use this word.

It can be helpful to know about the phrases that feature the word “hat” and then you can use them in conversation—you just might be surprised to learn how many there actually are.

Talking About Hats

Do you wear hats a lot?

Do you talk about them much in conversation?

You might not think of hats as a big topic of conversation, and they may not necessarily be that way directly.

The reality is that “hat” is a word that you will find used in many different phrases.

That’s why we created this episode, to talk about all the times you might use this word in conversation.

You may not necessarily be talking about hats directly, but you may very well use these phrases.

On Instagram a few months ago, Jessica taught something about “accessory” and had a hat on.

This got us thinking about expressions and idioms using the word hat, and realized it is a very popular word.

Knowing about these and how to use them would help you and be beneficial in conversation.

So we’re going to look at these now and how you can use them when you are talking to others.

Some Expressions Using The Word Hat

Let’s go over some expressions because there are a few worth noting.

  • Hang onto your hat: This means to get ready , because something crazy will happen. It’s kind of like brace yourself, which we discussed in episode 1390. This would be said in a humorous way, as you don’t tend to think of it in a very serious way at all.

An example of this could besomething like this.

Michelle: “I’m so glad you love touring NY. Well hang onto your hat, because it’s going to get even better!”

Lindsay: “I’m glad you are enjoying your birthday. Well hang onto your hat, because I have a huge surprise waiting for you outside!”

  • Eat one’s hat: This is a bit old fashioned sounding, but you may find it hilarious and say it as a total joke. It may not be something everyone chooses because it’s old and sort of cheesy sounding, but it depends on your sense of humor. Some of these types of expressions can actually make people laugh because they are surprised someone is even saying it. Those can be the best types of phrases to use sometimes!

So what does it mean to eat one’s hat? It shows confidence, and you use it to say if something happens that you don’t think will happen, you will eat your hat. It is definitely is exaggerating the situation and showing that you will do something impossible and crazy if you are wrong. You are so confident that you are right that you will eat your own hat if you are wrong about the outcome!

An example of this can be seen in the following situation.

Michelle: “There is no way my team won’t win this game. Seriously, if they lose, I’ll eat my hat!”

Lindsay: “I’d be shocked if he actually showed up tonight. In fact, if I see him, I’ll eat my hat!” •

  • Hats off: This is used when you want to congratulate someone or tell them good job. You may like something they did or want them to see that you are proud of them in some way. You noticed their hard work or accomplishment or positive thing in life, and this is your way of sharing that with them. It may be somebody that you know very well, or you might say something in a positive experience such as “hats off to the chef!”

An example of this can be seen in the following example.

Lindsay: “Michelle, hats off to you for starting a new exercise routine.”

Michelle: “Hats off to Lucy for giving such a wonderful presentation.”

  • Hat hair: This one is very common, and it’s something that we may all experience at times. It’s more of a regular vocabulary word, frequently used pertaining to something that you have when your hair looks a certain way. “Hat hair” occurs when your hair is messed up or looks flat from wearing a hat.

An example of this is shown in the following situation.

Lindsay: “Oh man, remind me never to wear a hat again. I get the worst hat hair.”

Michelle: “Check out my hat hair Lindsay. It’s ok I’ll just blow dry it tonight and fix it.”

These are all common expressions that feature the word hat in them.

You are likely to use them at some point in time, and therefore they are good to know for conversations you may have.

Takeaway

These are fun expressions, and so they can be great to try out in conversation.

Sometimes we like to do episodes like this on a particular word, and it’s easy to remember in these chunks.

Now you have a great way to remember certain expressions because they all deal with the word hat.

Try them out today, and see how they can add to your conversations in a fun way.

If you have any questions, please leave them below in the comments section.

We’ll get back to you as soon as we can.

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