# cat melodeon

> English word · Adjective

## Definitions
1. Terrible, appalling; of very poor quality.
2. Cacophonous; raucous.

## Etymology
Compare cat (“terrible”) and cat's melody. Ciaran Carson suggests the influence of Irish cat marbh or cat mara; literally "dead cat" or "sea cat", figuratively "calamity".

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/cat-melodeon