cat
noun /kæt/
/kæt/
Idioms - a small animal with soft fur that people often keep as a pet. Cats catch and kill birds and mice.
- a tin of cat food
- I have a cat called Bo.
- a pet/domestic cat
- a stray/feral cat
Extra ExamplesTopics Animalsa1- Cats mark their territory by spraying.
- In our childhood Irina and I fought like cat and dog.
- The cat miaowed pitifully.
- The cat slunk away into the darkness.
- The cat was in constant pain so they had it put down.
- The stray cats are wormed and treated with flea powder.
- There was a cat yowling outside my window last night.
- They didn't want kittens, so they had their cat spayed.
- We have a pet cat called Archie.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- domestic
- family
- house
- …
- have
- keep
- own
- …
- hiss
- mew
- miaow/meow
- …
- door
- flap
- food
- …
- fight like cat and dog
- fight like cats and dogs
- play (a game of) cat and mouse
- …
- a wild animal of the cat family
- the big cats (= lions, tigers, etc.)
- She went to Africa to photograph big cats.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- domestic
- family
- house
- …
- have
- keep
- own
- …
- hiss
- mew
- miaow/meow
- …
- door
- flap
- food
- …
- fight like cat and dog
- fight like cats and dogs
- play (a game of) cat and mouse
- …
see also fat cat, wildcat
Word OriginOld English catt, catte, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch kat and German Katze; reinforced in Middle English by forms from late Latin cattus.
Idioms
be the cat’s whiskers/pyjamas
- (old-fashioned, informal) to be the best thing, person, idea, etc.
- He thinks he's the cat's whiskers (= he has a high opinion of himself).
be raining cats and dogs
- (informal) to be raining heavily
(has the) cat got your tongue?
- (informal) said to somebody, especially a child, who stays silent when expected to speak, for example after being asked a question
- What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?
curiosity killed the cat
- (saying) used to tell somebody not to ask questions or try to find out about things that do not involve them
let the cat out of the bag
- to tell a secret carelessly or by mistake
- I wanted it to be a surprise, but my sister let the cat out of the bag.
like a cat on a hot tin roof
(British English also like a cat on hot bricks)
- very nervous
- She was like a cat on a hot tin roof before her driving test.
like a cat that’s got the cream (British English)
(US English like the cat that got/ate/swallowed the canary)
- very pleased with yourself synonym smug
- She looked like a cat that’s got the cream. She was almost purring with pleasure.
like herding cats (informal)
- used to describe a very difficult task, especially one that involves organizing people
- Managing a political party is a lot like herding cats.
look like something the cat brought/dragged in
- (informal) (of a person) to look dirty and untidy
no room to swing a cat
- (informal) when somebody says there’s no room to swing a cat, they mean that a room is very small and that there is not enough space
not have/stand a cat in hell’s chance (of doing something)
- (informal) to have no chance at all
play (a game of) cat and mouse with somebody | play a cat-and-mouse game with somebody
- to play a cruel game with somebody in your power by changing your behaviour very often, so that they become nervous and do not know what to expect
- He thought the police were playing some elaborate game of cat and mouse and waiting to trap him.
- Young car thieves enjoy playing cat and mouse with the police.
put/set the cat among the pigeons
- (British English) to say or do something that is likely to cause trouble
- Then she told them she was dropping out of college. That really set the cat among the pigeons.
there’s more than one way to skin a cat
- (saying, humorous) there are many different ways to achieve somethingTopics Successc2
when the cat’s away, the mice will play
- (saying) people enjoy themselves more and behave with greater freedom when the person in charge of them is not there