cat meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

cat

nounalso spelled Cat

UK /ˈkat/ · US /ˈkæt/

Etymology

From Middle English cat, catte, from Old English catt (“male cat”), catte (“female cat”), from Proto-West Germanic *kattu, from Proto-Germanic *kattuz, generally thought to be from Late Latin cattus (“domestic cat”) (c. 350, Palladius), from Latin catta (c. 75 A.D., Martial), possibly from an Afroasiatic language. Doublet of gato. A loan from Afro-Asiatic into European languages would roughly match how the animal itself spread, as genetic studies suggest domestic cats first began to spread out of the Near East / Fertile Crescent during the Neolithic, especially after they became popular and domesticated in Egypt 4000 years ago; they were found in Greece and Italy later, 2500 years ago. However, every proposed source word has presented problems. Adolphe Pictet and many subsequent sources refer to Barabra (Nubian) [script needed] (kaddîska) and "Nouba" (Nobiin) ⲕⲁⲇⲓ̄ⲥ (kadīs, “kadīs”) as possible sources or cognates, but M. Lionel Bender says the Nubian word is a loan from Arabic قِطَّة (qiṭṭa), which has long been thought to be non-Arabic in origin. Jean-Paul Savignac suggests the Latin word is from an Egyptian precursor of Coptic ϣⲁⲩ (šau, “tomcat”) suffixed with feminine -t, but John Huehnergard says "the source … was clearly not Egyptian itself, where no analogous form is attested." It may be a wanderword. Kroonen says the word must have existed in Germanic from a very early date, as it shows morphological alternations, and suggests that it might have been borrowed from Uralic, compare Northern Sami gađfe (“female stoat”) and Hungarian hölgy (“stoat; lady, bride”) from Proto-Uralic *käďwä (“female (of a fur animal)”). Cognates Related to Scots cat (“cat”), North Frisian kaat, kaot, Kat, kåt (“cat”), Saterland Frisian Kat (“cat”), West Frisian kat (“cat”), Alemannic German Chats, Chatz, chatza, chatzu, chatzò, chàzzà, Kàtz (“cat”), Bavarian ckozza, Katz, khoze, kòtze (“cat”), Cimbrian katze, khatz, khatza (“cat”), Dutch kat (“cat”), German Katze (“cat”), German Low German Katt (“cat”), Luxembourgish Kaz (“cat”), Mòcheno kòtz (“cat”), Yiddish קאַץ (kats, “cat”), Danish kat (“cat”), Faroese køttur (“cat”), Icelandic köttur (“cat”), Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish katt (“cat”), Latin cattus, catus (“cat”), Aromanian cãtush (“cat”), French chat (“cat”), Occitan, Norman cat (“cat”), Portuguese, Spanish gato (“cat”), Breton kaz, kazh (“cat”), Cornish cath, kath (“cat”), Irish cat, cut (“cat”), Scottish Gaelic cat (“cat”), Welsh cath (“cat”), as well as Ancient Greek κάτα (káta), κάττα (kátta, “cat”), Greek γάτα (gáta, “cat”), Turkish kedi (“cat”), and from the same ultimate source Belarusian, Russian кот (kot, “cat”), Ukrainian кіт (kit, “cat”), Polish kot (“cat”), Kashubian kòt (“cat”), Latvian kaķis (“cat”), Lithuanian katė (“cat”), and more distantly Armenian կատու (katu, “cat”), Basque katu (“cat”), Georgian კატა (ḳaṭa, “cat”), Classical Syriac ܩܛܐ, ܩܛܘ (“cat”), Arabic قِطَّة (qiṭṭa, “cat”) alongside dialectal Maghrebi Arabic قَطُّوس (qaṭṭūs, “cat”) (from Berber, probably from Latin).

18 senses

1A mammal of the family Felidae.
2A carnivorous, four-legged, generally furry domesticated…
3The flesh of this animal eaten as food.
4Any similar, chiefly non-domesticated, carnivorous…
5Chiefly with a descriptive word: an animal not of the…
6An angry or spiteful person, especially a woman.
7An ordinary person, especially a man; a fellow, a guy.
8Synonym of itinerant worker.
9A jazz musician; also, an enthusiast of jazz music.
10Synonym of prostitute.
11A double tripod for holding a plate, etc., with six…
12The game of trap ball; also (countable), the trap in that game.
13The pointed piece of wood that is struck in the game of tipcat.
14A strong tackle used to hoist an anchor to the cathead of a ship.
15Ellipsis of cat-o'-nine-tails.
16Now only in catboat: a sturdy merchant sailing vessel.
17A wheeled shelter, used in the Middle Ages to protect…
18A vagina or vulva.

› Terms relating to animals.

1

A mammal of the family Felidae.

Mammals need two genes to make the taste receptor for sugar. Studies in various cats (tigers, cheetahs and domestic cats) showed that one of these genes has mutated and no longer works.2011, Karl Kruszelnicki, Brain Food, →ISBN, page 53:

› Terms relating to animals. › A mammal of the family Felidae.

2

A carnivorous, four-legged, generally furry domesticated species (Felis catus) of feline animal, commonly kept as a house pet.

At twilight in the summer there is never anybody to fear—man, woman, or cat—in the chambers and at that hour the mice come out. They do not eat parchment or foolscap or red tape, but they eat the luncheon crumbs.1892, Walter Besant, chapter II, in The Ivory Gate […], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, […], →OCLC:
A major genetic survey of nearly 1,000 feral and domestic cats has revealed that every breed of household cat alive today originates from just five lineages which lived alongside ancient settlers in the Fertile Crescent, an area stretching from the eastern Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf.2007 June 29, Ian Sample, “DNA research identifies homeland of the domestic cat”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 29 Mar 2020:

1 more example

A group of wild cats is called a destruction.2019 June 6, “A gaggle, a confusion and a conspiracy - bizarre animal collective group names”, in BBC, archived from the original on 27 Jan 2022:

› Terms relating to animals. › A mammal of the family Felidae. › A carnivorous, four-legged, generally furry…

3

The flesh of this animal eaten as food.

“[…]—Say, do you mind telling me if people around here really eat cats?” He felt a shiver in the pit of his stomach. “Do they eat cat?” said the little old man, profoundly shocked.1948, Harry Stephen Keeler, The Case of the Jeweled Ragpicker (The Screwball Circus Mysteries; 3), Wildside Press, published 2017, →ISBN:
You do not eat cat simply for the thrill of eating cat. You eat cat because cats have a lively jingshen, or spirit, and thus by eating the animal you will improve your spirits.2013, Peter Hessler, Strange Stones: Dispatches from East and West, Harper Perennial, →ISBN:

1 more example

I ate at a Chinese restaurant once, even though my friends told me I would probably be eating cat and dog disguised as chicken.2013, James Bartleman, The Redemption of Oscar Wolf, Dundurn, →ISBN:

› Terms relating to animals. › A mammal of the family Felidae.

4

Any similar, chiefly non-domesticated, carnivorous mammal of the family Felidae, which includes bobcats, caracals, cheetahs, cougars, leopards, lions, lynxes, tigers, and other such species.

I grabbed it and ran over to the lion from behind, the cat still chewing thoughtfully on Silent's arm.1977, Peter Hathaway Capstick, Death in the Long Grass: A Big Game Hunter's Adventures in the African Bush, St. Martin's Press, page 44:
If you should someday round a corner on the hiking trail and come face to face with a mountain lion, you would probably never forget the mighty cat.1985 January, George Laycock, “Our American Lion”, in Boys' Life, Boy Scouts of America, section 28:

1 more example

She felt privileged to be here, living the experience inside the majestic cat [a tiger]; privileged to be part of their bond, even for only a few hours.2014, Dale Mayer, Rare Find. A Psychic Visions Novel, Valley Publishing:

› Terms relating to animals.

5

Broadly Chiefly with a descriptive word: an animal not of the family Felidae which (somewhat) resembles a domestic feline (etymology 1, noun sense 1.1.1).

civet cat polecat

› Terms relating to people.

6

Derogatory, Figuratively, Offensive An angry or spiteful person, especially a woman.

But, ere one rapid moon its tale has told, / He finds his prize — a cat — a slut — a scold.1835 September, “The Pigs”, in The New-England Magazine, volume IX, page 156:

7

Dated, Figuratively, Slang An ordinary person, especially a man; a fellow, a guy.

Now you've listened to my story / Here's the point that I have made / Cats were born to give chicks fever / Be it Fahrenheit or Centigrade1958, “Fever”, Eddie Cooley, Otis Blackwell, Peggy Lee (lyrics), performed by Peggy Lee:
Didn't know what time it was the lights were low / I leaned back on my radio / Some cat was layin' down some rock'n'roll 'lotta soul, he said1972, “Starman”, in The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, performed by David Bowie:

4 more examples

1973 December, "Books Noted", discussing A Dialogue (by James Baldwin and Nikki Giovanni), in Black World, Johnson Publishing Company, 77. BALDWIN: That's what we were talking about before. And by the way, you did not have to tell me that you think your father is a groovy cat; I knew that.
What fags are true I know what Mack's might do I'm quite familiar with cats like you Provoke to get me give me a good reason to smoke me Try to break me but never wrote me)1998, “Fiend”, in Respect, performed by Shaquille O'Neal:
I started showing up early for every team practice, and when all those other cats jetted to hit the showers, I put in even more work on the court, eliminating my weaknesses, practicing drills and perfecting my outside shot.2006, Noire [pseudonym], Thug-A-Licious: An Urban Erotic Tale, New York, N.Y.: One World, Ballantine Books, →ISBN, page 208:
I am sick of rappers claiming they hot when they really not I am sick of rappers bragging about shit they ain’t really got These cats stay rapping about cars they don’t own I am sick of rappers bragging about models they don’t bone.[…] And I am sick of all these cats with no talent That never lived in the hood but yet their lyrics be so violent.2006, “Sick of it all”, in Masta Ace (lyrics), Pariah:

8

US, Figuratively, Slang Synonym of itinerant worker.

9

Figuratively, Slang A jazz musician; also, an enthusiast of jazz music.

a jazz cat
I turn on the radio / There's some cat on the saxophone / Laying down a litany of excuses2008, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, “Hold on to Yourself”:

10

Figuratively, Obsolete, Slang Synonym of prostitute.

"Tell me. Willie said there was a cat in love with you. That isn't true, is it?" "Yes. It's true," Hudson corrects her, letting her think that by "cat" he means prostitute.1999, Carl P. Eby, Hemingway’s Fetishism: Psychoanalysis and the Mirror of Manhood, State University of New York Press, page 124:

› Terms relating to things.

11

Broadly A double tripod for holding a plate, etc., with six feet, of which three rest on the ground in whatever position it is placed.

12

Games Archaic, Broadly The game of trap ball; also (countable), the trap in that game.

13

Games Archaic, Broadly The pointed piece of wood that is struck in the game of tipcat.

14

Nautical, Transport Broadly A strong tackle used to hoist an anchor to the cathead of a ship.

Overhaul down & hook the cat, haul taut. Walk away the cat. When up, pass the cat head stopper. Hook the fish in & fish the anchor.2009, Olof A. Eriksen, Constitution - All Sails Up and Flying, Outskirts Press, page 134:

15

Nautical, Transport Abbreviation, Broadly, Ellipsis Ellipsis of cat-o'-nine-tails.

[H]e whipped a black man for disobedience of his orders fifty lashes; and again whipped him with a cat, which he wound with wire, about the same number of stripes;[…] he used this cat on one other man, and then destroyed the cat wound with wire.1839, Documents of the Assembly of the State of New York, testimony by Henry L. Pinckney (Assembly No. 335), page 44:

16

Nautical, Transport Archaic, Broadly Now only in catboat: a sturdy merchant sailing vessel.

17

Government, Military, Politics, War Broadly, Historical A wheeled shelter, used in the Middle Ages to protect assailants approaching besieged enemy defences; a cathouse.

From behind the narrow slits in the walls of Castellar, crossbowmen and archers took aim at the juddering cat as it came closer.2000, Stephen O'Shea, The Perfect Heresy, Profile Books, page 97:

18

Broadly, Slang, Vulgar A vagina or vulva.

African-American Vernacular

"What the hell, so this broad's got a prematurely-gray cat."1969, Iceberg Slim, Pimp: The Story of My Life, Holloway House Publishing:
As she came up, she tried to put her cat in his face for some licking.2005, Carolyn Chambers Sanders, Sins & Secrets, Hachette Digital:

1 more example

I had a notion to walk over to her, rip her apron off, sling her housecoat open and put my finger inside her cat to see if she was wet or freshly fucked because the dream I had earlier was beginning to really annoy me.2007, Franklin White, Money for Good, Simon and Schuster, page 64:

Synonyms: baudrons, cat, domestic cat, grimalkin, housecat, kibty, kitten, kitter, kitty, kitty-cat, kitty witty, malkin, mog, moggy, mouser, puss, pussy, pussy-cat
Derived terms: 401 terms
a cat can look at a king, a cat in gloves catches no mice, a cat in hell's chance, a cat may look at a king, all cats are grey by night, all cats are grey in the dark, alley cat, anticat, Arnold's cat map, ball-tailed cat, barn cat, bearcat, bear cat, bell the cat, big cat, black cat, blue cat, bodega cat, cabbit, cactus cat, care killed a cat, care killed the cat, cat activation noise, cataholic, cat and dog, cat and dog life, cat and kitten sneaking, cat-and-mouse, cat and mouse, cat around, catbath, cat bear, catbird, cat-bird, cat bird, cat-block, catblogging, cat box, catboy, cat-burglar, cat burglar, cat-burglarize, cat burglary, cat-burgle, catbutt, cat cafe, cat café, catcall, cat-call, cat calling the kettle black, cat-castle, catcatcher, catclaw, cat-claw, cat colony, cat containment, cat-cow, cat cracker, cat distribution system, catdom, cat door, caterole, caterwaul, catess, cat-eye, cat-eyed, cat eye syndrome, catface, cat factory, catfall, cat farm, catfight, cat fight, catfish, catfit, cat-flap, cat flap, cat food, cat-foot, cat-footed, catfucker, cat-fur, cat fur, catgender, catgirl, cat-girl, cat girl, cat got someone's tongue, cat got your tongue?, cat grape, cat grass, catgut, cathair, cat-hammed, cat-harpin, cat-harping, cathead, cat-head, cathole, cat-hole, cat hole, cathood, cat hotel, cathouse, cat-house, cat house, cat ice, caticide, caticorn, cat in hell's chance, cat in the meal-tub, cat in the meal tub, cat in the pan, cat in the sack, catio, catitude, catkin, catkind, cat lady, catlap, cat-lap, catless, catlet, cat-lick, catlicker, catlike, cat-like, catling, cat litter, cat liver fluke, catloaf, catlore, catlover, catloving, catly, cat malogen, cat-man, cat man, cat meat, cat milk, catmill, cat mill, catmint, catnap, cat-nap, cat nap, catnapper, cat-napper, cat napper, catne, catness, catnip, cat-nip, cat nip, cat-o'-nine, cat-o-nine, cat-o'-nine-tails, catophile, cat organ, catperson, cat piss, catproof, cat-proof, cat-rigged, cat-salt, cat's cradle, catscratch, cat scratch, cat-scratch disease, cat scratch disease, cat-scratch fever, cat scratch fever, cat's eye, catsfoot, cat's-foot, catshank, catshark, catshit, cat-shy, catsicle, cat-sit, cat sit, catsitter, catskin, catskinner, catslaughter, catslide, cat's meat, cat's melody, cat's meow, cat snake, cat's pajamas, cat's pyjamas, cat's paw, catspeak, cat squirrel, catstail, cat state, catstep, catstick, cat-stick, catstitch, cat stretch, catsuit, cat's whisker, cat's whiskers, catswort, cattail, cat-tail sedge, cat tax, cattery, cat that ate the canary, cat that swallowed the canary, cat that got the cream, cat thyme, cattish, cattitude, catto, cat tongue, cat tower, cat train, cat-trap, cat tree, catty, cat unit, Caturday, catvertising, cat wagon, catwalk, cat-walk, catwalker, cat wheel, catwise, cat-witted, catwoman, catworm, catwort, channel cat, Cheshire cat, chessy cat, civet cat, civvy cat, community cat, conceited as a barber's cat, cool cat, coon cat, copycat, copy-cat, copy cat, cow cat, curiosity killed the cat, dead cat, dead-cat bounce, dead cat bounce, different breed of cat, dog and cat, dogs bark, cats meow, dogs have masters, cats have staff, dogs have owners, cats have staff, domestic cat, duck-bill cat, duckbill cat, duck-billed cat, enough to make a cat laugh, ewe cat, farm cat, fat-cat, fat cat, feral cat, fight like cat and dog, fight like cats and dogs, First Cat, flying cat, fraidy cat, fraidy-cat, gib-cat, gib cat, grandcat, great cat, grin like a Cheshire cat, guilty as a cat in a goldfish bowl, he-cat, hellcat, hepcat, hep-cat, hep cat, herd cats, housecat, house cat, hunting cat, hydrophobia cat, Janus cat, Japan cat, Java cat, jungle cat, KatyCat, kick at the cat, Kilkenny cat, kit-cat, kitling, kitty-cat, kitty cat, kleptocat, lap cat, lead a cat-and-dog life, let the cat out, let the cat out of the bag, like a cat in a strange garret, like a cat on a hot tin roof, like a cat on hot bricks, like a scalded cat, like herding cats, like the cat that got the cream, lolcat, look like something the cat brought in, look like something the cat dragged in, look what the cat dragged in, look what the cat drug in, look what the cat's dragged in, look who the cat dragged in, make a cat laugh, marbled cat, m-cat, mercat, mudcat, multicat, musk cat, native cat, nervous as a cat, nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs, noncat, not enough room to swing a cat, not while pussy's a cat, old cat, painted cat, phoby cat, play the cat and banjo with, podcat, poor as a barber's cat, pork-cat syndrome, pseudocat, pussy cat, put the cat among the pigeons, rain cats and dogs, ram-cat, reduced cat, reed cat, ringtail cat, ring-tail cat, ringtailed cat, ring-tailed cat, ring-tailed civet cat, robocat, saltcat, scaredy cat, scaredy-cat, Schrödinger's cat, sea cat, which way the cat jumps, set the cat among the pigeons, she-cat, shoot the cat, sick as a cat, singed cat, skin the cat, small cat, snowcat, so help me cat, spokescat, spoonbilled cat, stink-cat, swamp cat, tear a cat, tear-cat, the cat would eat fish but would not wet her feet, there are many ways to skin a cat, there's more than one way to skin a cat, there's more than one way to feed a cat, there's more than one way to fuck a cat, thin as a barber's cat, tip-cat, toddy cat, tomcat, tom-cat, tom cat, top cat, troll cat, Velcro cat, wait for the cat to jump, walk back the cat, walk the cat back, wampus cat, watchcat, werecat, when the cat's away the mice will play, whip the cat, wildcat, wild-cat, wild cat, wobbly cat syndrome, Yule cat
Hypernyms: animal, creature, carnivore, feline, mammal, pet, vertebrate
Hyponyms: 119 terms
Abyssinian cat, Aegean cat, Bengal cat, Bombay, Bombay cat, Burmese, Burmese cat, calico cat, Cyprus cat, fox cat, Himalayan cat, Maine Coon, Maine Coon cat, Maltese cat, Manx, Manx cat, Norwegian forest cat, Ocicat, Persian, Persian cat, Russian Blue, Russian Blue cat, Savannah cat, Serengeti cat, Siamese, Siamese cat, tabby, tabby cat, tortoiseshell cat, tuxedo cat, Van cat, wolf-cat, Yule cat, African golden cat, Andean cat, Andean mountain cat, Asian golden cat, Asiatic golden cat, Temminck's cat, bay cat, black-footed cat, bobcat, cat-a-mountain, cat o' mountain, Chinese desert cat, Chinese mountain cat, colocolo, pampas cat, Pampas cat, Cymric cat, desert cat, false saber-toothed cat, false sabre-toothed cat, fisher cat, fishing cat, flat-headed cat, Geoffroy's cat, ghost cat, grass cat, hip cat, Iriomote cat, jungle cat, leopard cat, little spotted cat, oncilla, manul, Pallas' cat, Pallas cat, Pallas's cat, steppe cat, miner's cat, mountain cat, Pantanal cat, reed cat, roaring cat, rusty-spotted cat, sabercat, saber-toothed cat, sabrecat, sabre-toothed cat, sand cat, scimitar cat, scimitar-toothed cat, straw cat, swamp cat, tiger cat, catess, gib, he-cat, queen, ram-cat, she-cat, tom, tomcat, alley cat, barn cat, Cheshire cat, feral cat, farm cat, furbaby, purrito, wild cat, hairless, longhair, shorthair, bicolour, bluepoint, calico, chocolate point, colourpoint, lilac point, red point, seal point, torbie, tort, tortie, tortoiseshell, tuxedo, void
Meronyms: claw, Jacobson's organ, paw

cat

verb

Etymology

From Middle English cat, catte, from Old English catt (“male cat”), catte (“female cat”), from Proto-West Germanic *kattu, from Proto-Germanic *kattuz, generally thought to be from Late Latin cattus (“domestic cat”) (c. 350, Palladius), from Latin catta (c. 75 A.D., Martial), possibly from an Afroasiatic language. Doublet of gato. A loan from Afro-Asiatic into European languages would roughly match how the animal itself spread, as genetic studies suggest domestic cats first began to spread out of the Near East / Fertile Crescent during the Neolithic, especially after they became popular and domesticated in Egypt 4000 years ago; they were found in Greece and Italy later, 2500 years ago. However, every proposed source word has presented problems. Adolphe Pictet and many subsequent sources refer to Barabra (Nubian) [script needed] (kaddîska) and "Nouba" (Nobiin) ⲕⲁⲇⲓ̄ⲥ (kadīs, “kadīs”) as possible sources or cognates, but M. Lionel Bender says the Nubian word is a loan from Arabic قِطَّة (qiṭṭa), which has long been thought to be non-Arabic in origin. Jean-Paul Savignac suggests the Latin word is from an Egyptian precursor of Coptic ϣⲁⲩ (šau, “tomcat”) suffixed with feminine -t, but John Huehnergard says "the source … was clearly not Egyptian itself, where no analogous form is attested." It may be a wanderword. Kroonen says the word must have existed in Germanic from a very early date, as it shows morphological alternations, and suggests that it might have been borrowed from Uralic, compare Northern Sami gađfe (“female stoat”) and Hungarian hölgy (“stoat; lady, bride”) from Proto-Uralic *käďwä (“female (of a fur animal)”). Cognates Related to Scots cat (“cat”), North Frisian kaat, kaot, Kat, kåt (“cat”), Saterland Frisian Kat (“cat”), West Frisian kat (“cat”), Alemannic German Chats, Chatz, chatza, chatzu, chatzò, chàzzà, Kàtz (“cat”), Bavarian ckozza, Katz, khoze, kòtze (“cat”), Cimbrian katze, khatz, khatza (“cat”), Dutch kat (“cat”), German Katze (“cat”), German Low German Katt (“cat”), Luxembourgish Kaz (“cat”), Mòcheno kòtz (“cat”), Yiddish קאַץ (kats, “cat”), Danish kat (“cat”), Faroese køttur (“cat”), Icelandic köttur (“cat”), Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish katt (“cat”), Latin cattus, catus (“cat”), Aromanian cãtush (“cat”), French chat (“cat”), Occitan, Norman cat (“cat”), Portuguese, Spanish gato (“cat”), Breton kaz, kazh (“cat”), Cornish cath, kath (“cat”), Irish cat, cut (“cat”), Scottish Gaelic cat (“cat”), Welsh cath (“cat”), as well as Ancient Greek κάτα (káta), κάττα (kátta, “cat”), Greek γάτα (gáta, “cat”), Turkish kedi (“cat”), and from the same ultimate source Belarusian, Russian кот (kot, “cat”), Ukrainian кіт (kit, “cat”), Polish kot (“cat”), Kashubian kòt (“cat”), Latvian kaķis (“cat”), Lithuanian katė (“cat”), and more distantly Armenian կատու (katu, “cat”), Basque katu (“cat”), Georgian კატა (ḳaṭa, “cat”), Classical Syriac ܩܛܐ, ܩܛܘ (“cat”), Arabic قِطَّة (qiṭṭa, “cat”) alongside dialectal Maghrebi Arabic قَطُّوس (qaṭṭūs, “cat”) (from Berber, probably from Latin).

1

Nautical, Transport To hoist (an anchor) by its ring so that it hangs at the cathead.

The anchors were catted at the bows of the yacht […]1922, Francis Lynde, Pirates’ Hope, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, page 226:

2

Nautical, Transport To flog with a cat-o'-nine-tails.

3

Archaic, Slang To vomit.

‘He's going to cat, Maxim,’ said the Pussum warningly. The suave young Russian rose and took Halliday by the arm, leading him away.1921, DH Lawrence, Women in Love, Vintage, published 2008, page 65:

4

To go wandering at night.

"He doesn't realize that I know," Lord Callan said, "but it's been pretty obvious that most of his catting about London's darker alleys has been a search for his origins.1998, Mary Spencer, Lady’s Wager, page 324:
This was going to be my first try at catting out. I went looking for somebody to cat with me.2010, Claude Brown, Manchild in the Promised Land, page 18:

1 more example

My own dear wife could have tended to his needs if she hadn't been out catting.2012, Valerie Hansen, Wages of Sin:

5

To gossip in a catty manner.

Men from young to middleaged, with matt faces, vivacious and brightly dressed, catted together in gay groups.1932, Hugh Brooke, Man Made Angry, page 134:
They smiled, touched, rolled their eyes and raised their eyebrows, as they relived the audition and catted about some of their competition.1996, Alistair Boyle, The Unlucky Seven:

1 more example

In the story, Lady Ina gossiped and catted about a parade of the rich and famous—Jackie Kennedy looking like an exaggerated version of herself, Princess Margaret so boring she made people fall asleep, Gloria Vanderbilt so ditzy she didn't recognize her first husband.2016, Melanie Benjamin, The Swans of Fifth Avenue, page 293:

Related terms: feline, kitten, kitty, meow, miaow, mog, moggie, moggy, nine lives, purr, Schrödinger’s cat, tabby

cat

adj

Etymology Abbreviations.

1

Ireland, Colloquial Catastrophic; terrible, disastrous.

The weather was cat, so they returned home early.

Derived terms: cat bond, cat melodeon, J-cat

cat

noun

Etymology From concatenate, derived from the program's function of concatenating files. Compare concat.

1

Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Sciences A program and command in Unix that reads one or more files and directs their content to the standard output.

cat

verb

Etymology From concatenate, derived from the program's function of concatenating files. Compare concat.

1

Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Sciences To apply the cat command to (one or more files).

2

Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Sciences Slang To dump large amounts of data on (an unprepared target), usually with no intention of browsing it carefully.

Cat

noun

/kæt/

Etymology Abbreviation of Caterpillar (corporation and brand).

1

Slang A piece of heavy machinery, such as a backhoe or bulldozer, of the Caterpillar brand. (Occasionally, loosely, any big yellow machine of the type.)

Upon touring the mine, they found it to be a veritable canyon with some monstrous Cats trundling in the background.

cat

noun

Etymology Abbreviations.

9 senses

1A street name of the drug methcathinone.
2Abbreviation of catapult.
3Abbreviation of catalytic converter.
4Abbreviation of catamaran.
5Abbreviation of category.
6Abbreviation of catfish.
7Any of a variety of earth-moving machines. (from their…
8A ground vehicle which uses caterpillar tracks…
9Abbreviation of computed axial tomography; often used…

1

Slang A street name of the drug methcathinone.

2

Abbreviation Abbreviation of catapult.

a carrier's bow cats

3

Abbreviation Abbreviation of catalytic converter.

4

Abbreviation Abbreviation of catamaran.

These cats are a lot of fun in the harbor, but they're a real thrill on the open ocean riding ground swells.1966, Bruce Brown, director, The Endless Summer:

5

Abbreviation Abbreviation of category.

6

Abbreviation Abbreviation of catfish.

She missed the fish diet of her own country, and twice every summer she sent the boys to the river, twenty miles to the southward, to fish for channel cat.1913, Willa Cather, chapter 2, in O Pioneers!:
Fishing for cat is probably, up to a certain stage, the least exciting of all similar sports.1916, M. Shults, “Fishing for Yellow Cat in the Brazos”, in Field and Stream, vol. 21, 478:

› Abbreviation of caterpillar.

7

Slang Any of a variety of earth-moving machines. (from their manufacturer Caterpillar Inc.)

8

A ground vehicle which uses caterpillar tracks, especially tractors, trucks, minibuses, and snow groomers.

9

Abbreviation Abbreviation of computed axial tomography; often used attributively, as in “CAT scan” or “CT scan”.

Cat

noun

Etymology Abbreviation of Catalina (flying boat).

1

Informal A Catalina flying boat.

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Cat

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