Give away a secret, as in Mom let the cat out of the bag and told us Karen was engaged. This expression alludes to the dishonest practice of a merchant substituting a worthless cat for a valuable pig, which is discovered only when the buyer gets home and opens the bag. [Mid-1700s] Also see
pig in a poke.
Let the cat out of the bag
| Idioms: let the cat out of the bag |
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 | bag (Idiom) |
| let out (Idiom) |
| Cat Out of the Bag: Leave It to Beaver (TV Episode) (1958 Comedy TV Episode) |
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 | Idioms. The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more |
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Mentioned in
- bag (Idiom)
- let out (Idiom)
- Cat Out of the Bag: Leave It to Beaver (TV Episode) (1958 Comedy TV Episode)
- let (Idiom)
- pig in a poke (Idiom)
- Ling-Ling: Bewitched (TV Episode) (1965 Comedy TV Episode)
- cat
- Let the Cat Out of the Bag (2004 Romance Film)
- Gillie da Kid (Rap Artist, '90s, 2000s)
- out (Idiom)
- Idiom dictionary
- Beezy Bailey
- Martin Crowe (Emmerdale)
- Marina Orlova
