Word.ws English Dictionary

walk the cat back

walk the cat back is the alternative form of walk back the cat.

Meaning of walk back the cat

Verb

walk back the cat (third-person singular simple present walks back the cat, present participle walking back the cat, simple past and past participle walked back the cat)

  1. To reconstruct the sequence of events in order to identify the point of failure in an operation and ascertain responsibility.
    • Bernhard had been called back to headquarters for a conference, a general review of current operations with special attention to methods and sources, connecting dots while they walked back the cat, a dispirited and dispiriting exercise.2007, Ward Just, Forgetfulness, page 110
  2. To back down; to adopt a position where one is more willing to compromise.

Forms of walk the cat back

third-person singular presentwalks the cat back
present participlewalking the cat back
past participlewalked the cat back
pastwalked the cat back

Questions about walk the cat back

What is walk the cat back the alternative form of?
Walk the cat back is the alternative form of walk back the cat.

Words near walk the cat back in the dictionary

  1. walk softly and carry a big stick
  2. walk Spanish
  3. walk tall
  4. walk the beat
  5. walk the boards
  6. walk the cat back
  7. walk the chalk
  8. walk the chalk line
  9. walk the chalk mark
  10. walk the dog
  11. walk the floor

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: walk the cat back (page history and authors); walk back the cat (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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