cats

Noun

cat (countable and uncountable, plural cats)

1. (countable) 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

   Synonyms:

   felid, feline, panther[Panthera, pantherine[Pantherinae

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

   Synonyms:

   felid, feline, panther[Panthera, pantherine[Pantherinae, grimalkin, kitty, kitty-cat, puss, pussy, pussy-cat

3. (uncountable) 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

   Synonyms:

   felid, feline, panther[Panthera, pantherine[Pantherinae, grimalkin, kitty, kitty-cat, puss, pussy, pussy-cat

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

   Synonyms:

   felid, feline, panther[Panthera, pantherine[Pantherinae

5. (broadly, countable) 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
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

   Synonyms:

   bitch, tabby

See all 37 meanings of cat