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let the cat out of the bag

   Also found in: Medical, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.01 sec.
CAT
abbr.
1. clear-air turbulence
2. computerized axial tomography

cat  (kt)
n.
1.
a. A small carnivorous mammal (Felis catus or F. domesticus) domesticated since early times as a catcher of rats and mice and as a pet and existing in several distinctive breeds and varieties.
b. Any of various other carnivorous mammals of the family Felidae, which includes the lion, tiger, leopard, and lynx.
c. The fur of a domestic cat.
2. Informal A woman who is regarded as spiteful.
3. Slang
a. A person, especially a man.
b. A player or devotee of jazz music.
4. A cat-o'-nine-tails.
5. A catfish.
6. Nautical
a. A cathead.
b. A device for raising an anchor to the cathead.
c. A catboat.
d. A catamaran.
v. cat·ted, cat·ting, cats
v.tr. Nautical
To hoist an anchor to (the cathead).
v.intr. Slang
To look for sexual partners; have an affair or affairs: "catting around with every lady in sight" (Gore Vidal).
Idiom:
let the cat out of the bag
To let a secret be known.

[Middle English, from Old English catt, from Germanic *kattuz. Sense 6d, short for catamaran.]
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Verb1.let the cat out of the bag - divulge confidential information or secretslet the cat out of the bag - divulge confidential information or secrets; "Be careful--his secretary talks"
disclose, let on, divulge, expose, give away, let out, reveal, unwrap, discover, bring out, break - make known to the public information that was previously known only to a few people or that was meant to be kept a secret; "The auction house would not disclose the price at which the van Gogh had sold"; "The actress won't reveal how old she is"; "bring out the truth"; "he broke the news to her"; "unwrap the evidence in the murder case"
talk, spill - reveal information; "If you don't oblige me, I'll talk!"; "The former employee spilled all the details"


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And no amount of prompting and prodding from the Coventry Telegraph can persuade either school to let the cat out of the bag.
We ran out of time to get clearance to contact Brown from a Hollywood-type executive before deadline, seeing as how they understandably don't want to let the cat out of the bag before it airs.
But on this occasion it is very hard to let the cat out of the bag, as this tucked-away tavern is a hidden gem which I've enjoyed over the years.
 
 
 
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