1. A domesticated cat, commonly kept as a pet
   "Their house cat caught mice in the basement"; "Their domestic cat caught mice in the basement"; "Their kitty-cat caught mice in the basement";
   - domestic cat, house cat, Felis domesticus, Felis catus, kitty [informal], kitty-cat [informal], puss [informal], pussy [informal], pussycat [informal], mog [Brit, informal], moggy [Brit, informal], moggie [Brit, informal]
    
2. Feline mammal usually having thick soft fur; includes domestic cats, lions and tigers
   "The lion is a true cat known for its impressive mane";
   - true cat
    
3. Any of several large cats typically able to roar and living in the wild
   "The tiger is the largest of the big cats";
   - big cat
    
4. [informal] A spiteful woman gossip
   "what a cat she is!"
    
5. [N. Amer, informal] An adult person who is male (as opposed to a woman)
   "That cat can really play jazz";
   - man, adult male, geezer [Brit, informal], guy [informal], hombre [N. Amer, informal], bozo [N. Amer, informal], sod [informal], chappie [Brit, informal]
    
6. (trademark) a large tracked vehicle that is propelled by two endless metal belts; frequently used for moving earth in construction and farm work
   "The cat cleared the construction site in just a few hours";
   - Caterpillar
    
7. A whip with nine knotted cords
   "British sailors feared the cat";
   - cat-o'-nine-tails
    
8. The leaves of the shrub Catha edulis which are chewed like tobacco or used to make tea; has the effect of a euphoric stimulant
   "in Yemen cat is used daily by many adults";
   - kat, khat, qat, quat, Arabian tea, African tea

1. Beat with a cat-o'-nine-tails
   "Sailors were sometimes catted as punishment in the old navy"
    
2. [informal] Eject the contents of the stomach through the mouth
   "The sick child catted up his dinner";
   - vomit, vomit up, purge, sick, be sick [Brit], disgorge, regorge [archaic], retch, barf [informal], spew [informal], spue [archaic], chuck [informal], upchuck [N. Amer, informal], honk [Brit, informal], regurgitate, throw up [informal], chuck up [Brit, informal], hurl [informal], keck [informal], vom [informal], boak [UK, dialect], boke [UK, dialect], chunder [Brit, informal], ralph [N. Amer, informal], bring up
    
3. (nautical) hoist an anchor so that it hangs at the cathead
   "The crew began to cat the anchor as they prepared to leave port"

1. A method of examining body organs by scanning them with X rays and using a computer to construct a series of cross-sectional scans along a single axis
   "The CAT scan revealed a small fracture in his rib";
   - computerized tomography, computed tomography, CT, computerized axial tomography, computed axial tomography, computerised tomography [Brit], computerised axial tomography [Brit]

Derived forms: catted, cats, catting

Type of: adult, adult female, domestic animal, domesticated animal, egest, eliminate, excitant, excrete, felid, feline, flog, gossip, gossiper, gossipmonger, grownup, lash, lather, male, male person, newsmonger, pass, rumormonger [US], rumourmonger [Brit, Cdn], slash, stimulant, stimulant drug, strap, tracked vehicle, trounce, welt, whale [N. Amer, informal], whip, woman, X-raying

Part of: clowder, family Felidae, Felidae, Felis, genus Felis

Encyclopedia: Cat, Dog, & Co