Cheshire cat

American  

noun

1. a constantly grinning cat in Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

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idioms

1. grin like a Cheshire cat, to smile or grin inscrutably.

Cheshire cat Cultural  

1. A cat with an enormous grin encountered by Alice in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll. The cat tends to disappear, leaving only its smile hanging in the air.

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Discover More

“Smiling like a Cheshire cat” refers to anyone with a conspicuous and long-lasting smile.

Example Sentences

About one hundred yards up that hill ran the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway tracks, where black and navy-blue trains with a yellow Cheshire cat painted on them rumbled through town twice daily, morning and evening.

From Literature

Like the steward, he is grinning like a Cheshire cat today.

From BBC

Val and I were talking about when our respective sons were toddlers, throwing from a crib a mountain of Beanie Babies while smiling like Cheshire cats.

From Salon

“That may have been discussed as one of several possibilities,” the prosecutor replied with a Cheshire cat grin.

From Literature

When the conversation is flowing effortlessly about a niche show you both like, you can’t help but grin like a Cheshire cat.

From Los Angeles Times