qattus

Maltese

Etymology

Inherited from dialectal Maghrebi Arabic (compare Tunisian Arabic قَطُّوس‎ (qaṭṭūs), Libyan Arabic قَطُّوس‎ (gaṭṭūs)), from a Berber language, probably from Latin cattus (compare Maltese fellus, a Berber word from Latin pullus, though there are apparently Nubian words for cat that might also explain the -s in qattus).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʔatˈtuːs/

Noun

qattus m (plural qtates, feminine qattusa, diminutive qtajtes)

1. cat (male, domestic species)
2. Euphemistic form of qaddis: one's way of thinking

See also

• ferħ