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play cat and mouse

cat and mouse
P p

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • /pleɪ kæt ænd ˈmau̇s/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • /pleɪ kæt ænd ˈmau̇s/

Definitions of play cat and mouse words

  • noun play cat and mouse Also called cat and rat. a children's game in which players in a circle keep a player from moving into or out of the circle and permit a second player to move into or out of the circle to escape the pursuing first player. 1
  • noun play cat and mouse Western U.S. tick-tack-toe (def 1). 1
  • idioms play cat and mouse play cat and mouse, to engage in a gamelike relationship in which evasion and pursuit are used: They played cat and mouse for a while before she consented to go out with him. 1
  • idioms play cat and mouse play cat and mouse with, to toy or trifle with. to use strategy on one's opponent, especially while waiting to strike: The detective played cat and mouse with the suspect. 1
  • noun play cat and mouse to play with a person or animal in a cruel or teasing way, esp before a final act of cruelty or unkindness 0
See all 5 definitions of play cat and mouse

Information block about the term

Origin of play cat and mouse

First appearance:

before 1910
One of the 15% newest English words
First recorded in 1910-15

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Play cat and mouse

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Full grammatical hierarchy of Play cat and mouse

play cat and mouse popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 32% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.
According to our data about 62% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.

play cat and mouse usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for play cat and mouse

verb play cat and mouse

  • boned — having had the bones removed from it
  • boning — Anatomy, Zoology. one of the structures composing the skeleton of a vertebrate. the hard connective tissue forming the substance of the skeleton of most vertebrates, composed of a collagen-rich organic matrix impregnated with calcium, phosphate, and other minerals.
  • deviled — Theology. (sometimes initial capital letter) the supreme spirit of evil; Satan. a subordinate evil spirit at enmity with God, and having power to afflict humans both with bodily disease and with spiritual corruption.
  • deviling — Theology. (sometimes initial capital letter) the supreme spirit of evil; Satan. a subordinate evil spirit at enmity with God, and having power to afflict humans both with bodily disease and with spiritual corruption.
  • devilled — Theology. (sometimes initial capital letter) the supreme spirit of evil; Satan. a subordinate evil spirit at enmity with God, and having power to afflict humans both with bodily disease and with spiritual corruption.
All 7 Synonyms of play cat and mouse

See also

Matching words

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