What does "grimalkin" mean?

A cat, especially an elderly female.

What is a synonym for "grimalkin"?

Common synonyms include: alley cat, babushka, bag, bat, beldam, beldame.

Pronounced //ɡɹɪˈmæl.kɪn//.

//ɡɹɪˈmæl.kɪn// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Noun

1
A cat, especially an elderly female.
"Servant:..."Commend me unto Titton Tatton and to Puss thy Catton, and tell her that Grimalkin is dead."."
2
A bad-tempered old woman; a crone. archaic

"Servant:..."Commend me unto Titton Tatton and to Puss thy Catton, and tell her that Grimalkin is dead."."

From grey + malkin; literally "grey-haired cat" or "grey-haired woman".

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.