What does squatted mean?
Squatted is the past tense and past participle of squat, a word used in several distinct settings. Most commonly, it describes occupying land, a building, or an empty property without the owner's permission. Squatting can form part of political protest, especially when activists deliberately occupy a site they wish to retain or reopen; it can also describe people living temporarily in vacant or abandoned premises, often because suitable housing is unavailable. The word may carry negative associations involving property rights or social marginality, although the circumstances can vary considerably. In a gymnasium, squatted refers to performing a squat: bending at the knees and hips while keeping the feet on the ground and the torso relatively upright. Thus, the same form can describe either an unauthorized occupation of space or a deliberate bodily movement. Its useful range of meanings makes it especially common in news reporting, social commentary, property law, and fitness instruction.
verbTo occupy land or a building without legal permission, or to live in a place temporarily. It can also mean to perform a squat, bending the knees and raising the hips while keeping the feet on the ground.
- To occupy land, a building, or another place without legal permission.
- To live or stay temporarily in an empty or abandoned place.
- To perform a squat.
"They squatted in the empty property while the dispute over ownership continued."
"Activists squatted in the building to prevent it from being sold."
"She squatted down and held the position until the coach called time."
From protest camps to improvised homes, squatting turns occupying space into an act that can be political, desperate, inventive, or simply athletic.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of squatted
The word comes from the English verb squat, whose deeper origin is uncertain. Its present meaning developed through earlier uses meaning to sit down, crouch, or settle firmly in a place. The occupational sense became established when people began residing in buildings or on land without the owner's consent, while the exercise sense belongs to the older physical meaning of crouching low.
Related word forms
How squatted is actually used
The sense of occupying a place without permission is commonly associated with protest and with people lacking conventional housing. In a fitness context, the word is usually transitive or intransitive and refers to lowering the body into a deep-knee bend. The form can also have the more neutral meaning of briefly sitting or crouching, though this usage is less common today.
Easily confused with squatted
A squatter is a person who occupies a place without permission, whereas squatted is the verb form describing that action.