cat's meow

English

Pronunciation

(US) IPA^(key): /ˌkætsmiˈaʊ̯/
While "meow" is often pronounced in one syllable /mjaʊ̯/, in this phrase it is almost always pronounced in two syllables /miˈaʊ̯/.
Audio (AU) (file)

Noun

cat 's meow

(idiomatic, dated) A self-satisfied person.
(idiomatic) A highly sought-after and fancy example of something.[1]
That new car was really the cat's meow.

Synonyms

(highly sought-after example of something):
the bee's knees

the cat's pyjamas, the cat's whiskers

cat's ass (vulgar)

the bomb

the fox's socks

the shit (vulgar)

References

New York Times, August 6, 1922: "The flapper tells her "cakie" that a Chauve Souris sundae is "just the cat's meow"."

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