catty

adjective

Definition of cattynext
as in malicious
having or showing a desire to cause someone pain or suffering for the sheer enjoyment of it a catty remark that served only to hurt their feelings

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of catty Tortuga’s signature restaurant, Bamboo, sits catty-corner to the pool, and has a dining room with blush pink walls—a color handpicked by Oscar de la Renta. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 June 2026 With Daniel being tied to Armand, and the journalist turned documentarian having a catty, antagonistic relationship with Lestat, much of how he was turned and the real reason for why is left a mystery. — Sabrina Reed, Forbes.com, 3 June 2026 Yes, remarks those catty modernists made about their host could be less than savory, but Stein wasn’t bothered. — Emily Cox, ARTnews.com, 22 May 2026 Long gone are the days of catty rivalries between Tonya and Nancy, Michelle and Tara. — Sara Germano, Sportico.com, 17 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for catty
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catty
  1. malicious
  2. cruel
  3. vicious
  4. hateful
  5. nasty
  6. bitchy
Adjective
  • Once installed, the malicious app pushes you to enable Android's Accessibility service.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Companies should detect prompt injection, malicious or compromised tools, behavioral anomalies, data exfiltration and other threats.
    — Shashwat Sehgal, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of malicious
Adjective
  • The policy of sending them to a third country has been condemned as harsh and cruel.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Eight men were killed via gassing until an Alabama district judge ruled the execution method unconstitutionally cruel, in June; the Supreme Court has maintained the block.
    — Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of cruel
Adjective
  • The film focuses on a psychological experiment that Kaczynski was part of in college, where he was subjected to vicious personal attacks.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 25 Sep. 2026
  • In the clip, an 11-year-old Breakers player can be seen skating up the ice before delivering a vicious, two-handed slash to the head of a Kings player.
    — Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of vicious
Adjective
  • Calling yourself compassionate doesn't excuse dangerous accusations What, exactly, is hateful about a mother or father wanting their daughter to have a female-only locker room?
    — Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 29 Sep. 2026
  • His parents denied any wrongdoing in an interview with ABC10 News and said the family does not hold hateful beliefs.
    — Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of hateful
Adjective
  • Rather, the couple’s beloved dog, Lena, was up all night with a nasty case of diarrhea.
    — Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Sep. 2026
  • The latest special guest stars Este Haim as the mysterious Hallow's Eve, a villainess who wants to ruin Halloween forever by playing nasty tricks on kids out looking for candy.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of nasty
Adjective
  • Who would come correct with a bitchy, sassy, screw-all-y’all response, and who would play it safe with a mild-mannered send-off?
    — Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Even with that acknowledgment, however, there’s still the truth about the way women leaders must walk a fine line between exercising their power without being labeled as bitchy.
    — Candace Buckner, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of bitchy

Browse Nearby Words

cattlemen
catty
caucus
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Catty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catty. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All