maneki-neko

American  

[mah-ne-kee-ne-koh, -nay-koh] / ˌmɑˌnɛ kiˈnɛ koʊ, -ˈneɪ koʊ /

noun

1. a Japanese good luck statuette of a cat in a sitting position with one paw lifted in greeting or welcome.

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Example Sentences

The maneki-neko figurines are believed by some within Japanese culture to bring good luck and have been a feature in the Lucky Cat restaurants.

From BBC

The restaurateur recently launched Lucky Cat by Gordon Ramsay, in Bishopsgate in central London, featuring the beckoning Japanese cat models called maneki-neko.

From BBC

A mechanical maneki-neko cat, forever waving from a restaurant’s cluttered counter, leads to a stall stuffed with similar cats back at the Chinese wholesaler.

From Los Angeles Times

But once we tumble, we have the quest of the game, which is to go up, treating the Asian-inspired city — good fortune, beckoning cat maneki-neko figurines are a staple in nearly every robot household — as something of a giant cat tree.

From Los Angeles Times

I once asked Ms. Tomoko, our waitress, why it waved, and she explained that Maneki-neko means “beckoning cat,” and waving the left paw means it’s inviting customers into the restaurant.

From Literature