IdiomAnimals
English
Englishfat cat
Meaning: A rich but usually lazy person.
Example: “The protesters blamed the fat cats on the board for the layoffs.”
Origin: American slang from the 1920s. The journalist Frank Kent used it in 1928 for wealthy men who gave large donations to political campaigns, and it has kept its sense of a rich, privileged and often complacent person. The comparison is to a well-fed, lazy house cat.
More English idioms
- get off one's high horse To stop acting superior.
- get someone's goat To irritate or annoy someone.
- go whole hog To spare nothing; to do something with maximum enthusiasm.
- grin and bear it To accept or endure a bad situation.
- horse around To play a little roughly.
- horse of another color A situation or plan which represents a change from what was expected or assumed.
Explore another collection: Compliments & Insults
Compliments and insults from around the world, from the sweet to the savage.
- Без царя в голове (Bez tsarya v golove) Foolish and reckless — with no one in charge upstairs.
- Cabeça de alho chocho A forgetful scatterbrain whose thoughts won't stay put.
- Tu es mon rayon de soleil A warm way to tell someone they brighten your day.
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