n. — Newfoundland, Fishing
a long pole with a metal hook used to kill seals.
Type: 3. Semantic Change — The term bat refers to a particular tool used in the seal hunt. It is described as "a stout pole, 3-8 feet long with an iron hook and spike fastened to one end, used to assist a sealer on the ice and to kill seals" (see DNE, s.v. "bat"). Hunters use bats to kill seals by hitting them on the back of the head or on the nose (see the 1894, 1895 quotations). The term bat is marked as a semantic narrowing from British English (see OED-3, s.v. "bat" (I)(1), EDD, s.v. "bat" (1)(2)). The term bat is often used in combination with gaff (see the 1842 and 1927 quotations), which is defined as "a type of boat-hook with a (usu. short) wooden handle, used for various fisheries purposes" (see DNE, s.v. "gaff").
See also COD-2, s.v. "bat" (n)(4), which is marked "Cdn (Nfld)".