cat-o'-nine-tails

English

Etymology

Cat + of + nine + tails, attested since 1695.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US)

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Noun

Wikipedia cat-o’-nine-tails (plural cats-o'-nine-tails)

1. (nautical) A whip having nine, often knotted, whipcords, formerly used for flogging as naval punishment. [from late 17th c.]
   • 1695, William Congreve, Love for Love:

     If you should give such language at sea, you'd have a cat-o’-nine-tails laid cross your shoulders.

2. A similarly constructed leather nine-tail whip, as used in British penal colonies and certain armies.

Translations

whip

• Czech: důtky (cs) f pl
• Danish: nihalet kat c
• Dutch: kat met negen staarten m
• French: chat à neuf queues m
• German: neunschwänzige Katze (de) f
• Indonesian: cambuk (id)

• Norwegian: nihalet katt (no) m, katt (no) m
• Portuguese: chicote (pt) m
• Russian: кошка (kóška) f, девятихвостка (devjatikhvóstka) f
• Spanish: gato de nueve colas (es) m
• Swedish: niosvansad katt (sv) c

See also

• cat-o'-nine (uncommon short form)