Link Centre Dictionary

kitten

kit·ten

UK/ˈkɪtən̩/ US/kʰɪtn̩/ fairly common
noun (1) verb (1)

noun

1.

verb

1.

have kittens

  • “our cat kittened again this year”

Origin

From Middle English kitoun, kytton, kyton, keton (“kitten”), of obscure origin. Seemingly from, and usually explained as being from, unattested Anglo-Norman *kitoun, *ketun (compare Old French chitoun, cheton, chaton (“kitten”), diminutive of cat, chat (“cat”)); whence Modern French chaton (“kitten”). Similar words of Germanic origin may have reinforced this word; compare English kitling (“kit, kitten”), Low German Kitten (“kitten”), Icelandic kettlingur (“kitten”), Middle English chitte ("whelp, pup", see chit). The idea that kitoun, rather than being of Anglo-Norman origin, was in fact a purely Germanic derivation from one of these words is etymologically problematic, but cannot be definitively ruled out.

Phrases

  • cat and kitten sneaking
  • Discord kitten
  • dust kitten
  • have kittens
  • kitten factory
  • kitten farm
  • kitten heel
  • kitten mill

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.