HOW TO PRONOUNCE
cat
/ˈkæt/
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What does cat mean?
noun
- A mammal of the family Felidae.
- A carnivorous, four-legged, generally furry domesticated species (Felis catus) of feline animal, commonly kept as a house pet.
- The flesh of this animal eaten as food.
More meanings (59)
noun
- 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.
- 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).
- (figuratively, slang) Synonym of itinerant worker.
- (figuratively, slang) A jazz musician; also, an enthusiast of jazz music.
- A double tripod for holding a plate, etc., with six feet, of which three rest on the ground in whatever position it is placed.
- A strong tackle used to hoist an anchor to the cathead of a ship.
- Ellipsis of cat-o'-nine-tails.
- A program and command in Unix that reads one or more files and directs their content to the standard output.
- (slang) A street name of the drug methcathinone.
- Abbreviation of catapult.
- Abbreviation of catalytic converter.
- Abbreviation of catamaran.
- Abbreviation of category.
- Abbreviation of catfish.
- (slang) Any of a variety of earth-moving machines. (from their manufacturer Caterpillar Inc.)
- A ground vehicle which uses caterpillar tracks, especially tractors, trucks, minibuses, and snow groomers.
- Abbreviation of computed axial tomography; often used attributively, as in “CAT scan” or “CT scan”.
- (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.)
- (informal) A Catalina flying boat.
- Acronym of Central Atlas Tamazight.
- Acronym of computer-adaptive test.
- Acronym of common admission test.
- Acronym of civil air transport.
- Acronym of clear-air turbulence.
- Acronym of computed axial tomography.
- Acronym of career aptitude test.
- Acronym of computer-assisted/aided translation.
- Acronym of credit authorization terminal.
- Acronym of citizenship advancement training.
- Acronym of computer-aided transceiver.
- Acronym of cosmic anisotropy telescope.
- Acronym of coital alignment technique.
- Acronym of conidial anastomosis tube.
- Acronym of chloramphenicol acetyltransferase.
- Acronym of crisis assessment team.
- Acronym of Consumer Acceptance of Technology.
- (derogatory, figuratively, offensive) An angry or spiteful person, especially a woman.
- (dated, figuratively, slang) An ordinary person, especially a man; a fellow, a guy.
- (figuratively, obsolete, slang) Synonym of prostitute.
- (archaic) The game of trap ball; also (countable), the trap in that game.
- (archaic) The pointed piece of wood that is struck in the game of tipcat.
- (archaic) Now only in catboat: a sturdy merchant sailing vessel.
- (historical) A wheeled shelter, used in the Middle Ages to protect assailants approaching besieged enemy defences; a cathouse.
- (slang, vulgar) A vagina or vulva.
verb
- To hoist (an anchor) by its ring so that it hangs at the cathead.
- To flog with a cat-o'-nine-tails.
- To go wandering at night.
- To gossip in a catty manner.
- To apply the cat command to (one or more files).
- (slang) To dump large amounts of data on (an unprepared target), usually with no intention of browsing it carefully.
- (archaic, slang) To vomit.
adjective
- Catastrophic; terrible, disastrous.
proper noun
- A diminutive of the female given names Catherine and Caitlin.
- Centre for Alternative Technology
- Counter Assault Team
- Citizens Area Transit
- Canadian Achievement Tests
- Cambridge Antibody Technology
- Abbreviation of Caterpillar Inc..
Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0
IPA pronunciation
/ˈkæt/
Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.
In the pages of books
See this word in context.
Trotting along behind her, close to her heels, was quite the most forlorn specimen of the cat tribe she had ever beheld.
Again, another reminded her of children at play, and still another of nothing on earth but a demure lady stroking a cat.
More book examples (3)
After the cat had had his milk, I could think of nothing else to do, and I sat down to get warm.
Every spare moment that a cat has before lying down to rest is occupied in carefully cleaning itself, even under adverse circumstances.
After a time he descended upon a common, where he left the cat nearly dead with cold, ascended, and continued his voyage.