fat cat

American  

noun

Slang.

fat cats plural

1. a wealthy person from whom large political campaign contributions are expected.

2. any wealthy person, especially one who has become rich quickly through questionable dealings.

3. an important, influential, or famous person.

4. a person who has become lazy or self-satisfied as the result of privilege or advantage.

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fat cat British  

noun

1. slang

   1. a very wealthy or influential person

   2. ( as modifier )

      a fat-cat industrialist

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fat cat Idioms  

1. A wealthy and privileged person, as in This neighborhood, with its million-dollar estates, is full of fat cats. This term originally meant “a rich contributor to a political campaign,” and while this usage persists, it now is often applied more broadly, as in the example. [Colloquial; 1920s]

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• fat cats
  plural

Etymology

Origin of fat cat

An Americanism dating back to 1925–30

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fat cat

But the smooth Lamarzelle is presented as just enough of a calculating fat cat that we can’t help but root for Eve’s success.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 30, 2022

But Mr Fankhauser defended the £8.3m he has been paid since November 2014, and denied he was a "fat cat".

From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2019

So there are actually 5,011,589 owners of NFL franchises; however, only 31 are fat cat magnates.

From New York Times ● Feb. 1, 2018

“I became a fat cat, not as hungry as I was years ago.”

From Seattle Times ● May 11, 2017

He’ll read, “The fat cat sat,’’ but he’ll think it says, “The ft ctst” Very funny, Steven.

From "Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie" by Jordan Sonnenblick