scaredy-cat
Americannoun
-
scaredy-cats
plural
noun
Usage
What does scaredy-cat mean? A scaredy-cat is a person who is easily frightened. Scaredy-cat is very informal and is most often used by children. It is synonymous with fraidy-cat. Example: He won’t go into the haunted house because he’s a scaredy-cat.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of scaredy-cat
First recorded in 1930–35; scared ( def. ) + -y 2 + cat ( def. ) (in the slang sense “person, man”)
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:
Horror fans and those who like to be in the know must see it, though if you’re a scaredy-cat, maybe watch this one during the day.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
As a pacifist — i.e., a scaredy-cat — it wasn’t a story I would have sought on my own.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 8, 2022
Without them, a youngster described by his sister Maribel as "a scaredy-cat" may never have transformed into the 'raging bull' we know on court as one of the most ferociously competitive athletes of his generation.
From BBC ● May 25, 2021
I honestly didn’t expected it to, as I’m a complete scaredy-cat — I have never been able to handle any “Resident Evil” game.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 9, 2021
“Wow, Althea. Little noises got you nervous? Guess you’re the scaredy-cat you always were.”
From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas
Many self-described scaredy-cats will face their fears, particularly with Peele’s films, because of the critical buzz and the cultural importance of a black filmmaker creating horror movies starring black people and tackling weighty issues.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 22, 2019
The less credence she gives the purveyors of these potshots, the more they’ll come across as the hysterical scaredy-cats they are.
From Slate ● Nov. 16, 2018
In addition to assorted nut-cases and scaredy-cats, “The Old Dark House” is well-stocked with warped mirrors, gargoyle banisters and a canine statue suggesting the Egyptian god Anubis.
From New York Times ● Oct. 5, 2017
Macs, I claimed, were "glorified Fisher-Price activity centres for adults; computers for scaredy-cats too nervous to learn how proper computers work."
From The Guardian ● Feb. 28, 2011
Add in the fact that horses did not like to be surprised, and you had thousand-pound scaredy-cats that saw danger everywhere.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
