Cat (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. tted; p. pr. & vb. n.
Catting.]
(Naut.) To bring to the
cathead; as, to cat an
anchor. See Anchor. Totten.
Cat (kăt),
n. [AS. cat; akin to D. & Dan. kat, Sw. katt, Icel. köttr, G. katze,
kater, Ir. cat, W. cath, Armor. kaz,
LL. catus, Bisc. catua, NGr. ga`ta, ga`tos, Russ. &
Pol. kot, Turk. kedi, Ar. qitt; of unknown origin. Cf. Kitten.]
1. (Zoöl.) An animal of various species of the genera
Felis and Lynx. The domestic cat is Felis domestica. The European wild cat (Felis catus) is much larger than the domestic cat. In the United States the name wild cat is commonly applied to the bay lynx
(Lynx rufus) See Wild cat, and Tiger cat.
&fist; The domestic cat includes many varieties named
from their place of origin or from some peculiarity; as, the Angora cat; the Maltese cat; the Manx cat.
The word cat is also used to
designate other animals,
from some fancied resemblance; as, civet cat, fisher cat, catbird, catfish shark, sea cat.
2. (Naut.) (a)
A strong vessel with a
narrow stern, projecting
quarters, and deep waist. It is
employed in the coal and timber trade. (b) A strong tackle used to draw an anchor up to
the cathead of a ship.
Totten.
3. A double tripod (for holding a
plate, etc.), having six feet, of which three rest on the ground, in whatever position it is placed.
4. An old
game; (a) The game of tipcat and the implement with which it
is played. See Tipcat. (c) A game of ball, called, according to the number
of batters, one old cat, two old cat, etc.
5. A cat o' nine tails. See below.
Angora
cat, blind cat, See under Angora, Blind. -- Black cat the fisher. See under Black. --
Cat and dog, like a cat and dog; quarrelsome; inharmonious. "I am sure we have lived a
cat and dog life of
it." Coleridge. -- Cat
block (Naut.), a
heavy iron-strapped block with a
large hook, part of the tackle used in drawing an anchor up to
the cathead. -- Cat hook (Naut.), a strong hook
attached to a cat block. - - Cat nap, a very short
sleep. [Colloq.] -- Cat
o' nine tails, an instrument of punishment consisting of nine pieces of knotted line or cord
fastened to a handle; -- formerly used to flog offenders on the bare back. -- Cat's cradle, game played, esp. by children, with a string looped on the
fingers so, as to resemble small cradle. The string is
transferred from the fingers of one to those of another, at each transfer with a change
of form. See
Cratch, Cratch cradle. -- To let the cat out of the bag, to tell a secret, carelessly or willfully. [Colloq.] -- Bush cat, the serval. See Serval.
Hear it pronounced