Word forms: comparative cattier, superlative cattiest
adjective
If you say that someone is being catty, you mean that they are being unpleasant and unkind.
[informal]
His mother was catty, status-conscious and loud.
...catty remarks.
Synonyms: spiteful, mean [informal], malicious, malevolent More Synonyms of catty
catty in British English1
(ˈkætɪ) or cattish
adjectiveWord forms: -tier or -tiest
1. informal
spiteful
a catty remark
2.
of or resembling a cat
Derived forms
cattily (ˈcattily) or cattishly (ˈcattishly)
adverb
cattiness (ˈcattiness) or cattishness (ˈcattishness)
noun
catty in British English2
or cattie (ˈkætɪ)
nounWord forms: plural-ties
a unit of weight, used esp in E Asia, traditionally equal to about one and a half pounds but formalized as 0.5 kg in mainland China, 0.6 kg in Taiwan and Thailand, and about 0.605 kg in Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Singapore
(Mandarin) Chinese name: jin
Word origin
C16: from Malay kati
catty in American English1
(ˈkæti)
adjectiveWord forms: ˈcattier or ˈcattiest
1.
of or like a cat
2.
spiteful, mean, malicious, etc.
Derived forms
cattily (ˈcattily)
adverb
cattiness (ˈcattiness)
noun
catty in American English2
(ˈkæti)
nounWord forms: pluralˈcatties
a unit of weight used in various countries of Southeast Asia: in China it is equal to 500 grams, or 1.102 lb, but elsewhere it is equal to about 11⁄2 lb (680 grams)
Word origin
Malay kātī: see caddy1
Examples of 'catty' in a sentence
catty
If your attitude to food does not change, you may still laugh at the catty comments.
The Sun (2013)
It got a bit catty.
The Sun (2010)
(adjective)
Definition
spiteful
a mercilessly catty fashion blog
Synonyms
spiteful
He could be spiteful.
mean (informal)
The prison officer described him as the meanest man he'd ever met.
malicious
She described the charges as malicious.
malevolent
Her stare was malevolent, her mouth a thin line.
venomous
He made a venomous personal attack on his opponent.