What does catbird mean?
A catbird is a North American songbird belonging to the family Mimidae, the group that also includes mockingbirds and thrashers. The best-known species, the gray catbird (Dumetella carolinensis), is a slate-colored bird with a black cap and rust undertail, found in dense shrubs, hedges, and woodland edges across most of the continent east of the Rockies. It earns its name from one distinctive sound within its repertoire: a thin, nasal 'mew' that resembles the cry of a cat. Like its relatives, the catbird is an accomplished vocal mimic, singing long, rambling sequences assembled from other birds' phrases and ambient sounds. Beyond ornithology, the word lives on in the American idiom 'in the catbird seat,' meaning to occupy an advantageous or commanding position — a phrase carried into wide circulation by James Thurber's celebrated 1942 short story of that title and by sportscaster Red Barber before him. Whether describing the bird itself or a person who holds the upper hand, 'catbird' evokes cleverness, adaptability, and a perch with a view.
nounA North American songbird of the mimid family, especially the gray catbird (Dumetella carolinensis), so called because its call includes a mewing note reminiscent of a cat.
- The gray catbird (Dumetella carolinensis), a slate-gray North American songbird of the mimic thrush family known for its catlike mew and long, improvised songs.
- Any of certain other birds with catlike calls, such as some Australasian bowerbirds of the genus Ailuroedus.
"A gray catbird sang its rambling, catlike song from the hedgerow all morning."
"We heard the catbird mewing in the dense thicket before we ever saw it."
"After landing the biggest client of the quarter, she found herself sitting pretty in the catbird seat."
Standard regular plural; used both for multiple individual birds and for different species collectively.
"Catbirds arrived in force along the hedgerows this spring."
The phrase 'sitting in the catbird seat' — meaning holding an enviable position of power — was popularized by James Thurber's 1942 story and traces back to baseball broadcaster Red Barber, inspired by a bird that sings from a high perch.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of catbird
The word catbird is a straightforward English compound of 'cat' and 'bird,' coined in North America during the eighteenth century for the gray catbird's uncannily feline mewing call. The name reflects early naturalists' habit of naming animals after familiar domestic sounds. Its figurative offspring, 'the catbird seat,' arose from Southern American baseball broadcasting slang and entered national culture mid-twentieth century through James Thurber's writing. The compound shares its first element with other 'cat-' formations such as catcall and copycat, all built on the Old English and Germanic root behind the word 'cat.'
How catbird is actually used
In everyday American usage outside ornithology, 'catbird' appears most often through the idiomatic expression 'in the catbird seat,' which connotes advantage rather than the bird itself. The bird is common in suburban thickets across eastern and central North America and migrates south for winter.
Easily confused with catbird
A catkin is a scaly flower spike on trees like willows and birches, whereas a catbird is a bird.
Catnip is an aromatic herb in the mint family that cats respond to, while a catbird is a bird species.