cat-o'-nine-tails

2 definitions found

cat-o'-nine-tails - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  Cat o' nine tails \Cat" o' nine" tails`\, cat-o'-nine-tails
  \cat"-o'-nine"-tails`\n.
     1. a whip used as an instrument of punishment consisting of
        nine pieces of knotted line or cord fastened to a handle;
        -- formerly used to flog offenders on the bare back; --
        called also the cat. It was used in the British Navy to
        maintain discipline on board sailing ships.
  
     Syn: cat.
          [WordNet 1.5 +PJC] Catopter

cat-o'-nine-tails - WordNet (r) 2.1 (2005) :

  cat-o'-nine-tails
      n 1: a whip with nine knotted cords; "British sailors feared the
           cat" [syn: cat-o'-nine-tails, cat]