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Synonyms
Examples of house cat in a Sentence
the house cat at the Cheshire Cat Bookstore has the dual responsibility of being mascot and mouser
Recent Examples on the Web
As both predator and prey, resting at a high vantage point allows cats to eye their potential dinner while avoiding becoming someone else’s (yes, this intuition persists even for house cats whose meals get delivered in a dish).
—Colleen Grablick, Washington Post, 30 Jan. 2024
Like house cats, wildcats prey on a variety of small animals, such as rabbits, rodents and birds.
—Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Nov. 2023
As long as the streets are considered cats’ natural outdoor home, there will also be further abandonment of house cats by people unwilling or unable to take responsibility for them.
—Jonathan Franzen, The New Yorker, 25 Dec. 2023
Despite living alongside house cats for more than 2,000 years, Scottish wildcats ignored the felines as potential breeding partners for centuries.
—Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Nov. 2023
Gary didn’t immediately go from Alberta house cat to conqueror of mountains.
—Lila Seidman, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2023
Unlike dogs, house cats are not descended from pack animals, so these cats aren’t generally considered innately social.
—Lauren Leffer, Scientific American, 14 Dec. 2023
The ocelot is a midsize cat — larger than a house cat but smaller than a bobcat, according to the zoo.
—Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 12 Dec. 2023
Still, the only reason they would have been exposed to those diseases in the first place would have been from house cats.
—Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 8 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'house cat.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1607, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near house cat
Cite this Entry
“House cat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/house%20cat. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.
Kids Definition
house cat
nounMore from Merriam-Webster on house cat
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about house cat
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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