/ˈkæti/, [ˈkʰæɾi]
OriginFrom cat + -y. Compare Dutch kattig (“catty”); in sense “hostility”, see catfight.
- informalWith subtle hostility in an effort to hurt, annoy, or upset, particularly among women.
““So leave your umbrellas at home 'cause we're gonna be drier than my favorite varietal of white wine, pinot gris.” “Hmm. Interesting. According to my research, precipitation is a-coming.” “So Harry's ”
- informalResembling or characteristic of a cat.
- A (unit of) weight used in China which is metricated in Mainland China as exactly 0.5 kg, and approximately 0.6 kg for other places.
“16 Mess, make a Tale, which here is 20 s. English, 5 Tale make a Bancal, a weight so called, and 20 Bancal make a Catty, another weight.”
“Transparent yellow pieces are the best; the price is from eight to fourteen dollars per catty, according to size and quality.”
“The 130,000 mou of cotton fields in (Pailichou) district of Chihchiang County have produced 17 million catties of cotton seed, and 2.5 million catties of ginned cotton have been sold to the state.”
- slangA catapult.
““Give me your slingshot, and I'll let you have it back after school this afternoon,” she said firmly. […] I stuck the 'catty' into my back pocket and ran outside to meet the others.”
“You could also keep a tennis ball and a frog, or a catapult and a frog, but not all three together. I know because I tried it. The frog got a bit squashed between the ball and the handle of the catty.”
- US, colloquialThe borough of Catasauqua in Pennsylvania.
Formscattier(comparative) · cattiest(superlative) · catties(plural) · cattys(plural) · cattee(alternative) · kati(alternative) · katti(alternative, obsolete) · katty(alternative, obsolete)
Source: Wiktionary