cat in the pan

noun

A somersault.

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Meanings

noun
  1. UKobsoleteslangA somersault.
  2. UKfigurativelyobsoleteslangA reversal of a position.

    When George in pudding-time came o'er, / And moderate men looked big, sir, / I turned a cat-in-the-pan once more, / And so became a Whig, sir; […]

    1927, Songs of the Immortals, volume 1, page 33
  3. UKfigurativelyobsoleteslangA falsehood that is spread and attributed to another person.
Cite this entry
APA

cat in the pan. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cat%20in%20the%20pan

MLA

“cat in the pan.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cat%20in%20the%20pan. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cat in the pan,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cat%20in%20the%20pan.

Source: cat in the pan on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.