What does patten mean?
A patten is a protective shoe or overshoe worn over ordinary footwear to keep the wearer’s feet and shoes dry in muddy, snowy, or wet conditions. Historically, pattens often had raised soles, iron fittings, or other devices that helped a person cross soft or dirty ground without sinking into the mud. The word can also refer to a wooden-soled shoe or clog. Today it is chiefly historical or specialised, appearing in accounts of earlier clothing, in museum descriptions, and in literary writing rather than everyday speech. Its meaning is therefore associated with practical protection and with the social history of footwear before modern waterproof boots became widely available.
nounA patten is a shoe or overshoe designed with a flat, raised, or otherwise reinforced sole, traditionally worn over ordinary footwear to protect it from mud, snow, or wet ground. Historically, the word also referred to a wooden-soled shoe or clog.
- A protective shoe or overshoe worn over other footwear, especially in wet or muddy conditions.
- A historical wooden-soled shoe or clog.
"In heavy rain, she crossed the muddy field wearing a pair of pattens."
"The worker wore iron pattens to keep his shoes above the mud."
"Museum displays of seventeenth-century clothing include several examples of pattens."
Usually countable, especially when referring to a pair of protective overshoes.
"The farmer left his pattens beside the door."
Before waterproof boots became common, pattens helped people walk through mud without getting their ordinary shoes soaked.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of patten
The word entered Middle English from Old French patte, meaning “paw,” through a Medieval Latin form patta. The precise development of its footwear sense is less certain, but the term has long referred to shoes made or fitted to protect the wearer from wet and muddy ground.
How patten is actually used
The word is now mainly historical, literary, or museum-related in ordinary English, though it remains understandable in descriptions of traditional clothing and footwear.
Easily confused with patten
A patten is a protective shoe or overshoe, whereas a pallet is a flat platform used for transporting goods or supporting a load.