drat

A man exclaims "Drat!" as he drops his keys.

Definition

1. Interjection:

   • Expression of mild annoyance or irritation: "drat" is used to show frustration about a minor inconvenience or mistake.
   • Curse or exclamation: It functions as a softened oath, equivalent to saying "damn" but less offensive.

2. Verb (used only in third-person singular subjunctive):

   • To curse mildly: A rare verb form meaning to express irritation or to condemn something as bothersome.

Usage Examples

• Interjection:

  • Drat! I left my keys at home. (Expression of minor irritation about forgetting keys.)
  • Oh, drat! The train is late again. (Showing annoyance about a delayed train.)

• Verb:

  • Drat the boy! He’s always making noise. (A mild curse directed at the boy for being bothersome.)
  • Drat this weather! It’s ruining our plans. (Expressing frustration with the weather.)

Advanced Usage

• "Drat it!": A common exclamation used to express impatience or mild anger.
  • Drat it! I forgot to buy milk. (A stronger version of "drat" alone.)
• "Drat you!": Used to express irritation with a person, though it is less common and often playful.
  • Drat you for hiding my shoes! (Playful annoyance directed at someone.)

Variants and Related Words

• Dratting (adj): a rare, informal adjective meaning causing irritation.
  • That dratting noise kept me awake all night. (The bothersome noise.)
• Dratty (adj): a non-standard, playful form meaning annoying.
  • It’s such a dratty situation. (A frustrating circumstance.)

Synonyms

• Darn: a mild exclamation of annoyance.
  • Darn! I spilled my coffee. (Similar to "drat" but more common.)
• Bother: an expression of mild frustration.
  • Oh, bother! I missed the bus. (Equivalent in tone to "drat.")
• Blast: an interjection showing irritation.
  • Blast it! The computer crashed. (A slightly stronger synonym.)

Phrasal Verbs

• Drat off: an informal, rare phrasal verb meaning to dismiss something irritably.
  • He dratted off the problem and went to lunch. (He dismissed the problem with annoyance.)

Related Idioms

• Drat the luck: an expression of frustration with bad fortune.
  • Drat the luck! I lost my wallet. (A mild curse on one’s own bad luck.)
• Not a drat: a colloquial phrase meaning "not at all" or "nothing."
  • I don’t care a drat about the outcome. (I care nothing about it.)