| 1. | Also called cat and rat. a children's game in which players in a circle keep a player from moving into or out of the circle and permit a second player to move into or out of the circle to escape the pursuing first player. |
| 2. | Western U.S. tick-tack-toe (def. 1). |
| 3. | play cat and mouse, to engage in a gamelike relationship in which evasion and pursuit are used: They played cat and mouse for a while before she consented to go out with him. |
| 4. | play cat and mouse with,
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| cat and mouse | |
noun | |
| a game for children in which the players form a circle and join hands; they raise their hands to let a player inside the circle or lower their hands to bar a second player who is chasing the first |