Lat.
Abbreviation with 4 meanings
| Stands for | Latitude |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 4 |
| Categories | Geography & Places, Medical, Writing & Everyday, Organizations & Companies |
| Also written | LAT, Lat |
Lat. has four meanings. The most common are Latitude (geographic feature) and Lateral (medical imaging); it can also stand for Latin and Los Angeles Times.
Meanings of Lat. at a glance
| # | Lat. stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latitude | Geography & Places › Geographic Feature |
| 2 | Lateral | Medical › Medical Imaging |
| 3 | Latin | Writing & Everyday › Grammar and Dictionary |
| 4 | Los Angeles Times | Organizations & Companies › Media and Broadcasting |
1. Latitude
Geography & Places · Geographic Feature Abbreviations
Angular distance north or south of the equator, from 0 degrees at the equator to 90 degrees at the poles, written lat. in coordinates and tables.
Example: Lat. 40.7128 N, long. 74.0060 W puts the marker in Lower Manhattan.
Lines of latitude are called parallels and are evenly spaced, about 111 kilometres per degree. Lat. also abbreviates Latin in dictionary etymologies.
2. Lateral (Lat)
Medical · Medical Imaging Abbreviations
Side-to-side radiographic projection or anatomic direction away from the midline, as in "PA and Lat chest" or "lat ankle". In imaging, the lateral view adds depth to a frontal image, revealing structures hidden behind the heart or overlapping the spine.
Example: PA/Lat chest: small left effusion seen only on the lateral view.
Left lateral chest films are standard because they keep the heart near the detector. On a lateral chest film, blunting of the posterior costophrenic angle can reveal an effusion of about 50 mL, far less than the frontal view needs. In gym and anatomy slang, "lats" are the latissimus dorsi muscles.
3. Latin
Writing & Everyday · Grammar and Dictionary Abbreviations
Identifies Latin as the source language of a word in etymologies and glossaries. Latin supplied English with thousands of words, directly and through French, especially in law, science, medicine and religion.
Example: agenda (n.) from Lat. agenda "things to be done," plural of agendum
Dictionaries also distinguish Classical Latin, Late Latin (LL), Medieval Latin (ML) and New Latin (NL), the Latin of modern scientific names. Counting French intermediaries, more than half of the English vocabulary has Latin roots, though the most frequent everyday words are mostly Germanic. The single letter L. is also used.
4. Los Angeles Times (LAT)
Organizations & Companies · Media and Broadcasting Abbreviations
Largest daily newspaper in the western United States, based in El Segundo, California, covering Los Angeles, California, entertainment and national news. Owned by billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong since 2018.
Example: An LAT investigation revealed problems with the city's homeless services contracts.
Founded in 1881 and controlled for more than a century by the Chandler family. Tribune Company owned it from 2000 until Soon-Shiong bought it for about $500 million. The paper has won dozens of Pulitzer Prizes. More often shortened to "the L.A. Times" than LAT.
Related abbreviations
More geographic feature abbreviations
- Hts. – Heights
- Is. – Island
- Jct. – Junction
- L. – Lake
- Long. – Longitude
- MSL – Mean sea level
- Mt. – Mount
- Mtn. – Mountain
See all 46 geographic feature abbreviations →
More medical imaging abbreviations
- HRCT – High-resolution computed tomography
- HSG – Hysterosalpingogram
- HU – Hounsfield unit
- IVP – Intravenous pyelogram
- LDCT – Low-dose computed tomography
- LI-RADS – Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System
- Lung-RADS – Lung CT Screening Reporting and Data System
- MBS – Modified barium swallow
See all 58 medical imaging abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.