Cat's-paw \Cat's"-paw`\, n.
1. (Naut.)
(a) A light transitory air which ruffles the surface of
the water during a calm, or the ripples made by such a
puff of air.
(b) A particular hitch or turn in the bight of a rope,
into which a tackle may be hooked.
[1913 Webster]
2. A dupe; a tool; one who, or that which, is used by another
as an instrument to a accomplish his purposes.
[1913 Webster]
Note: In this sense the term refers to the fable of the
monkey using the cat's paw to draw the roasting
chestnuts out of the fire.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
cat's-paw
n 1: a person used by another to gain an end [syn: instrument,
pawn]
2: a hitch in the middle of rope that has two eyes into which
tackle can be hooked
WordNet (r) 2.0
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