If you know me, you know I love cats! Who can be surprised that I’d dedicate a whole lesson to them? There are a lot of idioms related to “cats” in English; however, today I’d like to focus on 4 idioms that are used as nouns. Some of these noun idioms describe people, while another represents a thing.

By using more of these idioms, and other colloquial English, you’re one step closer to more natural and fluent English. In order to hear the definitions of these idioms and how they sound, watch the 60 Second Saturday video below. Then continue reading for the full lesson notes, sentence examples, and practice exercises

Don’t be a scaredy-cat when it comes to using English, OK? 🙂

English Idioms with Cat

copy cat: someone who does the same thing as another

Affirmative use: Marco is such a copy cat because he does everything his brother does.

Negative use: I am not a copy cat; I’ve always been original.

Yes/No Question: Are you a copy cat?

Information Question: Who do you know that’s a copy cat?

scaredy-cat: a person who is very scared

Affirmative use: Jackie is a scaredy-cat because she never wants to do anything adventurous.

Negative use:  He isn’t a scaredy-cat; he’s jumped out of a plane!

Yes/No Question: Is your best friend a scaredy-cat?

Information Question: Who’s the biggest scaredy-cat you know?

fraidy-cat: a person who is very scared (same as scaredy-cat)

Affirmative use: Ryan is a fraidy-cat who never takes risks.

Negative use:  She’s never been a fraidy-cat and has always been bold!

Yes/No Question: Are you a fraidy-cat?

Information Question: Why are some people such fraidy-cats?

cat nap: a short sleep (usually in the day)

Affirmative use: I love taking cat naps on Saturday afternoons.

Negative use:  Don’t cat nap during class!

Yes/No Question: Do you think cat naps are good for your health?

Information Question: How often do you take cat naps?

Practice Makes Perfect

In the examples above, you can review affirmative and negative sentence examples, as well as yes/no and information questions. Can you write your own sentence and question examples, following those 4 structures?

Can you use the questions for practice with a partner?

Take it one step further and try and create a story using these idioms! You can write your story below in the comments.

Also – you can check out this previous English lesson for more cat idioms. (click here to read it)

Until next time,

Happy Studying! ♥

Do you want to learn more natural English, like more expressions, idioms, and phrasal verbs?