kitten

1 of 2

noun

kit·​ten ˈki-tᵊn How to pronounce kitten (audio)
: a young cat
also : an immature or young individual of various other small mammals

kitten

2 of 2

verb

kittened; kittening
ˈkit-niŋ,
ˈki-tᵊn-iŋ How to pronounce kitten (audio)

intransitive verb

: to give birth to kittens

Examples of kitten in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
All available dogs, puppies, cats and kittens will be spayed or neutered, microchipped and vaccinated. Nwa Democrat-Gazette, arkansasonline.com, 27 Sep. 2024 Gwen Stefani on Thursday introduced social media followers to her new kitten, Corn Shelton, who has taken the last name of Stefani's husband, Blake Shelton. Jessica Wang, EW.com, 26 Sep. 2024
Verb
Local authorities were able to coax the bobcat kitten out of the tree and bring it some comfort. Amaris Encinas, USA TODAY, 25 July 2023 We're just kitten around. Lizz Schumer, Good Housekeeping, 10 Mar. 2023 See all Example Sentences for kitten 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'kitten.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English kitoun, from Anglo-French *kiton, chiton, diminutive of cat, chat cat, from Late Latin cattus

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of kitten was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near kitten

Cite this Entry

“Kitten.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kitten. Accessed 14 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

kitten

noun
kit·​ten
ˈkit-ᵊn
: a young cat
also : a young individual of various other small mammals
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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