View synonyms for alley cat

alley cat

noun

a homeless, usually mongrel, cat that scavenges for food in alleys, streets, etc.

alley cat

noun

a homeless cat that roams in back streets

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Word History and Origins

Origin of alley cat¹

First recorded in 1900–05

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Idioms and Phrases

A promiscuous woman; also, a person of loose morals. For example, She's constantly picking up men in bars—a real alley cat . This idiom transfers a stray cat that frequents alleys in search of food to a woman of easy virtue, especially a prostitute seeking customers. [ Slang ; early 1900s]

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Example Sentences

The alley cat and her kittens would have mugged him already.

From The Daily Beast

Rat is tough, a 15-year-old “alley cat” version of her beautiful mother, Vanessa.

From The Daily Beast

Her sorrow was like sympathy for a mangy alley cat which she could not take home.

From Project Gutenberg

One cold rainy day when my father was a little boy, he met an old alley cat on his street.

From Project Gutenberg

The snow-white Angora was there as well as the mangy alley cat.

From Project Gutenberg

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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