no room to swing a cat also, not enough room to swing a cat. No hay espacio ni para estirar los brazos. no/not enough room to swing a cat meaning: 1. said about a place or space that is very small 2. said about a place or space that is very small. The origin of this expression is disputed. ‘there's not even room to swing a cat!’. Example: This hotels room is supposed to be for two people! A sailor is stipped to the waist and whipped with a cat-o’-nine-tails. Not enough room to swing a cat, as you can see. there’s not enough room to swing a cat meaning, definition, what is there’s not enough room to swing a cat: used humorously to say that an area or r...: Learn more. bab.la arrow_drop_down bab.la - Online dictionaries, vocabulary, conjugation, grammar Toggle navigation Meaning of no/not enough room to swing a cat in English no/not enough room to swing a cat said about a place or space that is very small SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases There's no room to swing a cat round in here as it is. Learn more. This expression, first recorded in 1771, is thought to allude to the cat-o'-nine-tails, or "cat," a whip with nine lashes widely used to punish offenders in the British military. Very little space, cramped quarters, as in, Extremely cramped quarters. Very little or no space; very cramped quarters or proximity. not enough room to swing a cat Very little space, cramped quarters, as in There's not enough room to swing a cat in this tent. This is the British English definition of … Others believe it refers to the Scots word, The stage at Off Broadway's Ars Nova is so long and narrow, there's hardly, He's cleared that space and now has enough, We practiced in our drummer Billy Gough's garage, full of canoes and mooses' heads; there wasn't enough, Being one of five children and a triplet, there wasn't, Accordingly it was carried out on deck as below there was not enough, So the only place a cat could be swung with the force required for the punishment was on deck, as below decks there was, literally, not enough. In English, you use the expression 'there's not enough room to swing a cat' when you want to say a place is much too small. There wasn't enough room to swing a cat. That way, you're still able to claim said room is small and you get a nice claw-pattern motif chucked in for free! not enough room to swing a cat (English)Origin & history Attested 1665, by which point already in common use; perhaps of naval slang origin. Used in reference to a very confined space. When Mark Twain used the phrase “swing a cat” in the 19th century in Innocents Abroad, he was obviously referring to a cat of the feline variety: “Notwithstanding all this furniture, there was still room to turn around in, but not to swing a cat in, at least with entire security to the cat.” No room to swing a cat ". This saying derives from the 16th Century, when sailors were punished by being whipped with a cat o' nine tails. (noun) Latest plaque on city music trail, Not enough room to swing a cat; naval slang and its everyday usage, Picking the ideal home can be a dicey game. The trick is to get a cat just large enough that it just touches the walls of the room. People use the phrase ‘no room to swing a cat’ to mean a cramped space so the connection is still there with its origin. Many reports claim that the cat in question is the 'cat o'nine tails'. There’s no room to swing a cat in there. not enough room to swing a cat ( uncountable ) ( informal) Very little space (available) (of a very small room) . Many believe it alludes to swinging a cat-o’- nine-tails, a whip with nine lashes fastened to a handle, which was long used to punish offenders in the British military (it was formally abolished only in 1948). not enough room to swing a cat Very little space, cramped quarters, as in There's not enough room to swing a cat in this tent. https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/room+to+swing+a+cat. Not enough room to swing a cat. there isn't room to swing a cat. 1665, Richard Kephale Medela Pestilentiae. Noun. Find more similar words at wordhippo.com! Hardly, there's … Whether the 'cat' was a real moggy or the flail-like whip used to punish sailors in the British Navy isn't clear. The Idiom Attic - a collection of hundreds of English idioms, each one explained. However, few know this is because 200 years ago sailors were punished by being whipped with a "cat o' nine tails". What does not-enough-room-to-swing-a-cat mean? Nowadays it does not mean that there is no room to swing a cat by his/her tail. Where that came from and what it means I have no idea, but it leaves a memorable image. Shipshape or booby prize? It’s really crowded in here. ♦ (no) room to swing a cat phrase with brd-neg, usu v-link PHR It was described as a large, luxury mobile home, but there was barely room to swing a cat. The expression, 'no room to swing a cat' does indeed come from the sea faring days and there being insufficient room except on the quarter deck, with the crew assembled on the main deck for a flogging to take place. Meaning. That's enough to convince many people - the actual evidence shows the theory to be highly dubious. no (or not) room to swing a cat humorous used in reference to a very confined space Origin: cat in the sense ‘cat o nine tails’ * * * no room to swing a ˈcat idiom (informal) when sb says there s no room to swing a cat, they mea They overbooked the conference, and by the time we were all in the room there wasn't enough room to swing a cat. Whether the 'cat' was a real moggy or the flail-like whip used to punish sailors in the British Navy isn't clear. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Very little or no space; very cramped quarters or proximity. The phrase has been used throughout history as a way of saying the room is small or the apartment is small. If those dates are in fact the earliest uses then the 'cat o' nine tails' theory is wrong. quotations . There's not enough room to swing a cat. The nature of that citation makes it clear that the phrase was already in use prior to it being committed to paper. Their living room was very small. It was described as a large, luxury mobile home, but there was barely room to swing a cat. All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. no room to swing a cat: translation. Origin. The 'cat o' nine tails' isn't recorded until 1695 though, in William Congreve's Love for Love: "If you should give such language at sea, you'd have a cat-o'-nine-tails laid cross your shoulders.". A small space. Translation for 'there is no room to swing a cat' in the free English-Polish dictionary and many other Polish translations. When there is not much space, a person may say there isn't enough room to swing a cat. The phrase no room to swing a cat means hardly any room at all; it is used to describe a very confined space. See also: cat, enough, not, room, swing, to While it is frequently stated that the phrase is derived from cat-o’-nine-tails ("type of whip"), this latter term is only attested from 1695, and hence this idiom presumably derived from literally swinging a cat around, as by the tail. Cómo que te vas de vacaciones! Image in public domain and modified by PoC. There isn't room to swing a cat. Synonyms for with no room to swing a cat include poky, cramped, small, tiny, confined, narrow, boxy, incommodious, little and restricted. How can you work in a small room like this? No hay sitio ni para meter un gato. (idiomatic) Very little space (available) (of a very small room). How do you expect all four of us to stay in that room? Many families are forced to live in tiny apartments that have no room to swing a cat. They overbooked the conference, and by the time we were all in the room there was no room to swing a cat. no room to swing a cat. Easy Learning Idioms Dictionary. As so often though, they don't supply evidence, just certainty. What's the origin of the phrase 'No room to swing a cat'? As a candidate for folk etymology goes the 'cat o' nine tails' story has it all - plausibility, a strong storyline and a nautical origin. After all, a room that you can swing a cat around in is fairly roomy. The task for anyone who wants to claim that theory correct is to pre-date those citations. Meaning. Meaning and origin of phrases. See full dictionary … root (someone or something) out of (something or some place), root around in (something) for (something), Room Temperature Photochemically-Induced Fluorescence. See also: cat, no, room, swing, to. Meaning: An awkward or confined space. Also, if swinging animals around is your thing, then it's clear that cats are the obvious way to go. Whether the 'cat' was a real moggy or the flail-like whip used to punish sailors in the British Navy isn't clear. An awkwardly small, confined space. Most reference books say something similar to this entry from the Penguin Dictionary of English Idioms of 2001: “The original phrase was probably ‘not room to swing a cat-o’nine-tails’, and dates from the time when sailors were flogged on board ship. Many families are forced to live in tiny apartments with not enough room to swing a cat. Li: What a relief! For example, most native British English speakers know that "No room to swing a cat" means "there was not much space" and can use the idiom properly. They had not space enough (according to the vulgar saying) to swing a Cat in. Everyday low … The meaning of "no room to swing a cat". " Dictionary, Encyclopedia and Thesaurus - The Free Dictionary, crowd (someone or something) out of (something), the webmaster's page for free fun content, NEW pounds 27m SCHOOL IS TOO FULL; Kids taught in corridors, Hand on Heart, it was a fantastic 2-Tone pub! a very small place; a confined place; a crowded or cramped space; not much space; Example Sentences. If you say ' There's no room to swing a cat ' or ' You can't swing a cat ', you mean that the place you are talking about is very small or crowded. But on the flip side, they must have gone through a lot of cats back then. COMMON EXPRESSIONS FROM HIGH SEAS Did you know how many of our phrases are navy slang? This expression, first recorded in 1771, is thought to allude to the cat-o'-nine-tails, or “cat,” a whip with nine lashes widely used to punish offenders in the British military. The way I always heard this quote was something like, "The room was so crowded that you couldn't swing a dead cat by the tail without hitting someone." Swinging cats can be fun. Richard Kephale's Medela Pestilentiae, 1665: "They had not space enough (according to the vulgar saying) to swing a Cat in.". One final note. 7 If you say `There's no room to swing a cat' or `You can't swing a cat', you mean that the place you are talking about is very small or crowded. The phrase itself dates from at least the 17th century. Meaning: If a room is very small, you can say that there isn't enough room to swing a cat in it. It is, however, NOT associated with 'letting the cat out of the bag'-meaning to discover a secret or uncover a ruse. No hay mucho espacio en el que moverse como pueden ver. What Is the Origin of the Saying "Not Enough Room to Swing a Cat"? Buy Not Enough Room to Swing a Cat: Naval Slang and Its Everyday Usage by Martin Robson (ISBN: 9781844860739) from Amazon's Book Store. used for saying that a room is very small and there is not enough space to live comfortably in it Synonyms and related words Definition and synonyms of not enough room to swing a cat from the online English dictionary from Macmillan Education. Many reports claim that the cat in question is the 'cat o'nine tails'. [mainly British] said to mean that a place is very small and has very little space. Translation English Cobuild Collins Dictionary Not enough room to swing a cat around in. 'Cat ' was a real moggy or the flail-like whip used to punish sailors the. Able to claim that the cat in question is the most basic junk ) to a! Data is for informational purposes only actual evidence shows the theory to be highly.. A confined place ; a confined place ; a crowded or cramped space ; Example Sentences a,. 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