fat cat
noun
1
a
: a wealthy contributor to a political campaign fund
b
: a wealthy and privileged person
c
: big shot
2
: a lethargic complacent person
Synonyms
Examples of fat cat in a Sentence
The best seats in the theater were reserved for the fat cats.
that last recession was particularly hard on the poor, but the fat cats barely noticed a dip in their bank accounts
Recent Examples on the Web
Bill Murray has previously played America’s fat cat in Garfield: The Movie in 2004 and Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties in 2006.
—
Kalia Richardson, Rolling Stone, 13 Nov. 2023
But the army of fat cats did not come to Virginia Beach simply to save the state.
—Norman J. Ornstein, The New Republic, 31 Oct. 2023
There’s no angry condemnation of Wall Street fat cats here; just plenty of quirkiness around the edges, not least of all from the late Willie Garson as Bomer’s street contact.
—Matthew Gilbert, BostonGlobe.com, 1 Sep. 2023
Typically sure-footed media titans found themselves on unfamiliar ground — portrayed as out-of-touch corporate fat cats.
—Meg James and Wendy Lee, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Sep. 2023
While tycoons imagine a future of taxiing their fellow fat cats to space on a whim, these billionaire-plaything rockets keep exploding.
—Prem Thakker, The New Republic, 27 May 2023
Since that day, Ford has waited for another fat cat to steal her heart, even telling her two grandchildren about her plans to care for an overweight feline.
—Kelli Bender, Peoplemag, 2 May 2023
In October, a day after the San Francisco 49ers added a very rich running back to their stockpile of generationally wealthy men, general manager John Lynch was asked about the feasibility of feeding so many fat cats.
—Eric Branch, San Francisco Chronicle, 13 Mar. 2023
Absent are the darker elements that seeped into his Mexican compositions — images of corrupt priests and fat cats sipping martinis as workers toiled.
—Philip Martin, Arkansas Online, 13 Mar. 2023
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Kalia Richardson, Rolling Stone, 13 Nov. 2023
But the army of fat cats did not come to Virginia Beach simply to save the state.
—Norman J. Ornstein, The New Republic, 31 Oct. 2023
There’s no angry condemnation of Wall Street fat cats here; just plenty of quirkiness around the edges, not least of all from the late Willie Garson as Bomer’s street contact.
—Matthew Gilbert, BostonGlobe.com, 1 Sep. 2023
Typically sure-footed media titans found themselves on unfamiliar ground — portrayed as out-of-touch corporate fat cats.
—Meg James and Wendy Lee, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Sep. 2023
While tycoons imagine a future of taxiing their fellow fat cats to space on a whim, these billionaire-plaything rockets keep exploding.
—Prem Thakker, The New Republic, 27 May 2023
Since that day, Ford has waited for another fat cat to steal her heart, even telling her two grandchildren about her plans to care for an overweight feline.
—Kelli Bender, Peoplemag, 2 May 2023
In October, a day after the San Francisco 49ers added a very rich running back to their stockpile of generationally wealthy men, general manager John Lynch was asked about the feasibility of feeding so many fat cats.
—Eric Branch, San Francisco Chronicle, 13 Mar. 2023
Absent are the darker elements that seeped into his Mexican compositions — images of corrupt priests and fat cats sipping martinis as workers toiled.
—Philip Martin, Arkansas Online, 13 Mar. 2023
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fat cat.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1928, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Articles Related to fat cat
Dictionary Entries Near fat cat
Cite this Entry
“Fat cat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fat%20cat. Accessed 2 Dec. 2023.
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