cat o nine tails

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noun, plural cat-o'-nine-tails.

a whip, usually having nine knotted lines or cords fastened to a handle, used for flogging.

Origin:
1685–95; so called in allusion to a cat's scratches

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World English Dictionary

cat-o'-nine-tails

—n , pl -tails
	Often shortened to: cat a rope whip consisting of nine knotted thongs, used formerly to flog prisoners

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10

Cat o nine tails is always a great word to know.

So is quincunx. Does it mean:

an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.

a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.

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