domestic cat
3
1.0
- noun
- /dəˈmɛstɪk kæt/
:
gato doméstico
- A domestic cat can be very playful and often enjoys chasing after toys.
- domestic cats and dogs
- wild and domestic cats
- well-fed domestic cat
WIRED has challenged me to take what I have learned about photographing big cats in the wild to photographing a domestic cat.
- WIRED has challenged me to take what I have learned about photographing big cats in the wild to photographing a domestic cat.
Examples
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Our domestic cats outdoors stay about a broad-jump's length away from people and farther from people they don't know.
Blog text (16) -
In September 2012, a 5-year-old female domestic cat (cat Y) was seen by a veterinarian for dyspnea, tachypnea, hyporexia, and lethargy.
Academic text (2015) -
Domestic cats, no less than their larger cousins, are carnivores.
Academic text (1993) -
As for domestic cats, they belong inside unless they're on a leash or in an enclosed space.
Blog text (5) -
They concluded that the five million domestic cats in Britain kill at least seventy million small animals each year, an average of fourteen prey animals per cat.
Academic text (1993) -
Scientists initially suspected the cause might have been canine distemper, a viral illness diagnosed in other Amur tigers and common in Russia in domestic cats and dogs.
Academic text (2011) -
In domestic cats, tuberculosis is caused primarily by infection with M. bovis or M. microti (3-5); M. tuberculosis infection is less common (6).
Academic text (2015) -
Coyotes were detected less frequently in exurban developments than in the other land uses in our study, which could result in unusually high songbird mortality owing to domestic cats.
Academic text (2001) -
The domestic cat curled up on the windowsill, basking in the warm sunlight.
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Many families choose to adopt a domestic cat to keep as a loving pet.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
A small, furry pet or a large wild animal like a lion
155
1.0
A house cat people call in a friendly way, often by children
81
4.5
A small cat that people keep at home
12
3.5
A pet cat people call in a friendly way to children
9
1.0
A small cat kept as a pet in a home
1
3.1
A small furry animal people keep as a pet that often catches mice
How Domesticated
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a cat kept by humans' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'domestic' (adapted for human use/kept by people) with 'cat' (a feline). This adjective+noun composition is cross-linguistically common and follows regular compositional patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily understand it.
Etymology
Domestic cat: The name domestic cat comes from the idea that domestic means 'of the house' and these cats began living with people to catch mice and stay near homes. That's why 'domestic cat' now means a small pet cat kept by people.