prat

Prat is a term with several distinct meanings in English and in Romance-language toponymy. In English, prat is a slang noun most often used to refer to the buttocks, and more commonly as an insult describing a foolish or contemptible person. It is informal and widely understood in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries; the term can be jocular or pejorative depending on context.

In Romance-language toponymy, prat means meadow or pasture. In Catalan and Occitan, prat derives from the Latin pratum and appears in many place names. A well-known example is El Prat de Llobregat, a municipality in Catalonia, Spain, near Barcelona. It is the site of Barcelona–El Prat Airport, commonly referred to as El Prat.

Prat is also used as a surname in Catalan-speaking areas and elsewhere. As a surname, it appears in various populations and may be found in different countries, sometimes with regional spellings or adaptations. Related surnames include Pratt, which can be encountered in English-speaking regions and may have separate etymological paths.

Overall, the meaning of prat depends on context: a casual British slang term for a person or body part, or a geographic toponym meaning meadow in Catalan and Occitan. The two uses are unrelated beyond their shared spelling in English, and they reflect distinct linguistic traditions.