shoot the cat

verb

"shoot-the-cat" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“shoot the cat” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a verb - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
13
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To vomit.

Key facts for shoot the cat
PropertyValue
Headwordshoot the cat
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters13
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “shoot the cat” sits in English frequency

shoot the cat falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for shoot the cat is 13 letters long, classified as a verb. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "To vomit.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for shoot the cat in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct English form is shoot the cat, spelled S-H-O-O-T- -T-H-E- -C-A-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    To vomit.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "shoot the cat"?
"shoot the cat" is spelled S-H-O-O-T- -T-H-E- -C-A-T.
What does "shoot the cat" mean?
As a verb, "shoot the cat" means: To vomit.
What language does "shoot the cat" come from?
"shoot the cat" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “shoot the cat”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is S-H-O-O-T- -T-H-E- -C-A-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list