Word.ws English Dictionary

let the cat out of the bag

let the cat out of the bag verb: to disclose a secret; to let a secret be known, often inadvertently.

Verb

let the cat out of the bag (third-person singular simple present lets the cat out of the bag, present participle letting the cat out of the bag, simple past and past participle let the cat out of the bag)

  1. (idiomatic) To disclose a secret; to let a secret be known, often inadvertently.
    • It was going to be a surprise party until someone let the cat out of the bag.
    • [H]e proved himself as decent, decorous, and conscientious, as Peter was rampant, boisterous, and —— (this last epithet I choose to suppress, because it would let the cat out of the bag).1849, Currer Bell [pseudonym; Charlotte Brontë], “The Winding-up”, in Shirley. A Tale. […], volume III, London: Smith, Elder and Co., […], →OCLC, page 300

let the cat out of the bag meaning in Tamil

let the cat out of the bag in Tamil

ஒரு ரகசியத்தைத் தவறுதலாக வெளியிடுதல்

Synonyms of let the cat out of the bag

All synonyms of let the cat out of the bag

Forms of let the cat out of the bag

third-person singular presentlets the cat out of the bag
present participleletting the cat out of the bag
past participlelet the cat out of the bag
pastlet the cat out of the bag
alternative formlet the cat out the bag

Origin of let the cat out of the bag

First use appears c. 1753 or 1770. The inverse of the idiom pig in a poke. If a dishonest merchant tries to sell a cat as a pig and the cat comes out or is taken out of the bag, the merchant's secret is disclosed.

Questions about let the cat out of the bag

What does let the cat out of the bag mean?
Let the cat out of the bag means to disclose a secret; to let a secret be known, often inadvertently.
What is let the cat out of the bag in Tamil?
Let the cat out of the bag in Tamil is ஒரு ரகசியத்தைத் தவறுதலாக வெளியிடுதல். See Let the cat out of the bag meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is let the cat out of the bag?
Let the cat out of the bag is a verb.
What is the past tense of let the cat out of the bag?
The past tense of let the cat out of the bag is let the cat out of the bag.

Words near let the cat out of the bag in the dictionary

  1. let something ride
  2. let something slip
  3. let that sink in
  4. let the buyer beware
  5. let the cat out
  6. let the cat out of the bag
  7. let the cat out the bag
  8. let the chips fall where they may
  9. let the cobbler stick to his last
  10. let the devil out
  11. let the dice fall where they may

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: let the cat out of the bag (page history and authors); let the cat out of the bag (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-au-let the cat out of the bag.ogg.

Cite this entry: “let the cat out of the bag.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/let_the_cat_out_of_the_bag. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.