scaredy-cat

[ skair-dee-kat ]
See synonyms for scaredy-cat on Thesaurus.com
nounInformal.

Origin of scaredy-cat

1
First recorded in 1930–35; scared + -y2 + cat (in the slang sense “person, man”)

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British Dictionary definitions for scaredy-cat

scaredy-cat

/ (ˈskɛədɪˌkæt) /


noun
  1. informal someone who is easily frightened

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012