cattail
Americannoun
-
cattails
plural
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cattail
First recorded in 1425–75, cattail is from the late Middle English word cattestail. See cat, tail 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
On her back sits a basket woven from cedar boughs and bark, sword fern fronds, cattail and grapevines, which is adorned with dried squash and pine cones.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 17, 2023
Green cattail thickets line the shallow blue pool where the river backs up against the dam, a 31-foot-high concrete wall.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 17, 2023
“The cattail would be good. The alders and the willows would be a nice improvement.”
From Washington Post ● Sep. 11, 2021
The moment of seeing this belted kingfisher on the tip of a cattail, doing its call, swooping across the creek—and being so present in that moment—made me realize that I can actually enjoy my job.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 5, 2020
She threw some cattail roots into a boiling pot of water, soaked some moss in the liquid, and pressed it against the dark gashes.
From "The Incredible Journey" by Sheila Burnford
It was close to sunset when I took my shoes off and waded deep past the bank of reeds and cattails.
From Salon ● May 11, 2024
The resulting structure, which uses filtered river water, resembles a series of towering metal cattails.
From New York Times ● Apr. 4, 2023
Sitting in my red kayak, I was too busy trying to navigate the next rapid, a narrow water trail that shot through a dense grove of cattails.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2022
Inundating the land, and allowing the ancient bulrushes and cattails to return—or potentially cultivating rice—would stop those emissions immediately, and even store carbon as new plants grow.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 7, 2022
We locked hands and watched the cattails duck and weave against the cold clear afternoon sky.
From "Burning Blue" by Paul Griffin
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
