What does "kitten" mean?
A young cat, especially before sexual maturity (reached at about seven months).
Kitten
/ˈkɪtn̩/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A young cat, especially before sexual maturity (reached at about seven months).
- Grammar: kitten is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: kitty, alley cat, bairn, be confined.
- Useful contrasts: adult cat, fully grown cat, mature cat.
- Usage evidence: Reporter: Did you buy her a kitten?
How to use "kitten"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "kitten" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "kitten" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "kitten" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "kitten" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "kitten" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "kitty" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "kitten", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A young cat, especially before sexual maturity (reached at about seven months).
"It was supposed to have happened thus: the cat had young kittens, and frequently carried them mice, and other animals its prey, and among the rest a young rat: the kittens, not being hungry, played with it, and when the cat came to give suck to the kittens, the rat likewise sucked her."
- 2 young domestic cat wordnet
- 3 A young rabbit, rat, hedgehog, squirrel, fox, beaver, badger, etc.
"The first move at beaver raising in North Dakota had its starting in the fall of 1874, when a kitten beaver was taken out of Mandan Lake by the writer and given to a little Indian girl who then lived with her guardians at Pretty Point near the present village of Sanger, Oliver county."
- 4 A moth of the genus Furcula.
"Two of these formed cocoons in a manner I have not seen before. They were supplied when full-grown with plenty of rotten willow wood, which I have always found a most suitable material for insects using bark or old wood in forming cocoons such as the kittens, Apatele alni, etc., and most made the usual cycle of cocoons on it."
- 5 A term of endearment, especially for a woman. colloquial
"Speak only when spoken to, kitten."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 A term of endearment, especially for a woman.; A girlfriend. broadly, colloquial
Verb
- 1 To give birth to kittens. intransitive, transitive
"A cat about to kitten, must not be spoken of by its name, but called a witch. (Madagascar.)"
- 2 give birth to kittens wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
adult catfully grown catmature cat
Example
"Reporter: Did you buy her a kitten?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "kitten"?
Common synonyms include: kitty, alley cat, bairn, be confined, bear, bear a child.
How do you use "kitten" in a sentence?
Reporter: Did you buy her a kitten?
How do you pronounce "kitten"?
Pronounced /ˈkɪtn̩/.
Etymology
From Middle English kitoun, kytton, kyton, keton (“kitten”), of obscure origin. Seemingly from, and usually explained as being from, unattested Anglo-Norman *kitoun, *ketun (compare Old French chitoun, cheton, chaton (“kitten”), diminutive of cat, chat (“cat”)); whence Modern French chaton (“kitten”). Similar words of Germanic origin may have reinforced this word; compare English kitling (“kit, kitten”), Low German Kitten (“kitten”), Icelandic kettlingur (“kitten”), Middle English chitte ("whelp, pup", see chit). The idea that kitoun, rather than being of Anglo-Norman origin, was in fact a purely Germanic derivation from one of these words is etymologically problematic, but cannot be definitively ruled out.