Meanings
present singular third person kittenfishes · participle present kittenfishing · participle past kittenfished · past kittenfished
- neologismtransitiveTo fool (someone) on a dating app by presenting oneself in a more favourable light; to engage in kittenfishing.
Someone who kittenfishes presents themselves unrealistically on their profile, whether they use heavily edited or old-as-hell pics, or they lie about their age, occupation or lifestyle.
2019 May 24, Brittany Wong, “The Biggest White Lies Told On Dating Apps, As Shared In Tweets”, in HuffPost, archived from the original on 13 Apr 20242 more examples
You'll obviously know you've been kittenfished once you do meet up for that first date. But psychologist Ana Jovanovic says there are a few signs to look out for in order to spot it beforehand.
2019 July 19, Danielle Page, “Kittenfishing: The common dating trend you're probably (slightly) guilty of”, in NBC News, archived from the original on 30 Apr 2024Meeting in person can then feel like a significant breach of trust, which many people find discouraging. "I've been kittenfished several times, and it's always disappointing. It's hard to build trust when someone isn't upfront," says another Reddit user.
2024 July 22, Mark Travers, anonymous quotee, “2 Reasons People Are 'Kittenfishing' On Dating Apps, By A Psychologist”, in Forbes, New York, N.Y.: Forbes Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 23 Jul 2024
Origin
Blend of kitten + catfish, regarded as a less severe form of catfishing. Equivalent to kitten + -fish.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
kittenfish. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kittenfish
“kittenfish.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kittenfish. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “kittenfish,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/kittenfish.
Source: kittenfish on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.