rat-a-tat-tat

English

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -æt

Noun

rat-a-tat-tat (plural rat-a-tat-tats)

1. A series of short, sharp taps, especially made by knocking on a door, beating a drum, or firing an automatic weapon.
   • 2023 April 14, Rosyln Sulcas, “Review: Grief and Mourning, Delivered With Ecstatic Vitality”, in The New York Times‎^[1]:

     A man, the source of the lamentation, appears and as he walks across the stage, his cries transmute into song, and the slow snare drum rat-a-tat-tat of Ravel’s composition begins.

Interjection

rat-a-tat-tat

1. A series of short, sharp taps, especially made by knocking on a door, beating a drum, or firing an automatic weapon.

Translations

Translations

• Russian: тра-та-та (tra-ta-ta), пиф-паф (ru) (pif-paf)