CAT-O'-NINE-TAILS • FREE-TRANSLATOR.COM • Definition of Cat-o'-nine-tails

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noun

cat-o'-nine-tails, Cat o' nine tails n.

A whip used as an instrument of punishment consisting of nine pieces of knotted line or cord fastened to a handle; formerly used to flog offenders on the bare back; called also the cat. It was used in the British Navy to maintain discipline on board sailing ships.

Synonyms: cat.

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Etymology of 'Cat-o'-nine-tails'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Cat-o'-nine-tails" Quotes from Famous Books

... cry which arose when he struck was not like these other sounds, but had quite a different accent. The practice of devotional scourging is still kept up in Rome, but in a very mild form, as it appears that the penitents keep their coats on, and only use a kind of miniature cat-o'-nine-tails of thin cord, with a morsel of lead at the end of each tail, and not such bloodthirsty implements as those we ...

— Anahuac • Edward Burnett Tylor

... vessel, should be at this very time on shore, lounging about the wharves, disguised as an inoffensive citizen, but watching an opportunity to pounce upon a poor unfortunate fellow, like myself, and bear him off in triumph, to become a victim of the cat-o'-nine-tails at the gangway, or food for gunpowder." While I was shuddering at the idea of such a climax to my adventures, I saw a man coming towards me, whose countenance and demeanor aroused all my suspicions. He was a thick-set, swarthy individual, with enormous black whiskers ...

— Jack in the Forecastle • John Sherburne Sleeper

Words linked to "Cat-o'-nine-tails" : cat