proverb · Words worth keeping
A cat has nine lives.
A cat has nine lives.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
The saying gives a cat nine lives. It exaggerates survival or repeated chances through an impossible-sounding count.
What the words are saying
Nine makes resilience vivid rather than documenting a biological quantity. A useful application can describe an escape or another opportunity without assuming safety. The phrase does not justify exposing an animal or person to danger or guarantee that another chance remains.
Everyday example
A storyteller uses the expression for a fortunate escape without predicting another one.
When to use it
Use it to explain an exaggerated survival image.
What it does not mean
Nine lives is figurative and does not make exposure to danger safe.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided proverb reference
Supplied reference A; unit 256; PDF page 40
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.