Wheroe does the phrase 'enough room to swing a cat' come from?

Answer 1

This colorful phrase evokes strange images of feline cruelty. In fact it has nothing to do with cats, but the real story is at least as cruel. The "cat" is a cat-of-nine-tails, a type of whip used to discipline sailors on old sailing ships. The cat-of-nine-tails has one handle to which is attached nine thin strips of leather, each perhaps three feet long. The cat-of-nine-tails would be used to administer lashings that would sting and leave welts on the recipient. The whippings would take place on the deck, because below deck there was not enough ceiling height to swing a cat-of-nine-tails.

Answer 2

during the early middle ages a large number of people were burnt as witches. not only were the witches put on the fire but also the familiars which were mostly cats. now the europeans at this time did not have a standard set of mesurements, so the bishop of ludicrus decided rather than waste a valuble resource he should standardise property values by using these cats. the property owner would decide the value of a property by swinging a cat in each room and coming to a total value. the cat had to be gripped by the tail, no more than 1.5 field mice from the end and rotated vigourously. if the cat was decapitated it was the cheapest room, though arguments used to break out about skull fractures and slight grazing. if you could swing a single cat then you had a mid range room. the most expensive room was where you could swing 2 cats, 'du cattes' hence the medieval italian coin the ducat. animal measurement caught on and arable land was reckoned by how far you could catapault a cow and the badger and pine marten became the standard unit of measurement for taylors in england. for a time animal measurement gained some disreput when con men were persuading peasants to part with large lots of land cheaply after measuring them with a duck. the age of enlightenment caused a crisis though, as less witches were being burned and the increasing pace of urbanisation led to a fall in supply and an increase in demand. this was solved by the philosopher voltair though. he replace the cat with 1.57 carp or a sack of moderately compressed gerbils, the gerbil was now widely avalable in france at this time due to its growing trade links with the levant. the cumougeonous british as always ignored this continental innovation and resorted to chikens stuffed in cat skins.

Answer 3

I believe it comes from the time when corporal punishment was dealt out and the "cat o' nine tails" was used. A flogging implement that has several strands which used to be made of leather and often had metal bits in.

Answer 4

sailors punishment was a whip that had nine 'tails' to it so you got nine lashes for the price of one. there had to be enough room for the whipper to swing the 'cat'

Answer 5

Cat-o'-nine-tails.
A whip with 9 lashes (enough room to swing it)

Answer 6

From the muslim religion of cat swingers. It's a knockoff from the american religion of snake handlers

Answer 7

It refers to the 'cat'o'nine tails'.A wip used in the 17-1800's to flog prisoners and sailors on board ship for instance.

Answer 8

oh that one, well i was swinging a cat by his toe one summer evening when all of a sudd.....

Answer 9

the cat swnging man..