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catawampus

cat·a·wam·pus
C c

Transcription

    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [kat-uh-wom-puh s]
    • /ˌkæt əˈwɒm pəs/
    • US Pronunciation
    • US IPA
    • [kat-uh-wom-puh s]
    • /ˌkæt əˈwɒm pəs/

Definitions of catawampus word

  • adjective catawampus askew; awry 3
  • adjective catawampus askew; awry. 1
  • adjective catawampus positioned diagonally; cater-cornered. 1
  • adverb catawampus diagonally; obliquely: We took a shortcut and walked catawampus across the field. 1
  • noun catawampus Out of alignment, crooked, cater-corner. 1
  • noun catawampus (US) A fierce imaginary animal, a bogeyman. 0

Information block about the term

Origin of catawampus

First appearance:

before 1830
One of the 36% newest English words
1830-40 for earlier sense “utterly”; cata- diagonally (see cater-cornered) + -wampus, perhaps akin to wampish

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Catawampus

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation

catawampus popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 40% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.
This word is included in each student's vocabulary. Most likely there is at least one movie with this word in the title.

catawampus usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for catawampus

adj catawampus

  • off-center — not centered; diverging from the exact center.
  • awry — If something goes awry, it does not happen in the way it was planned.
  • askance — with an oblique glance
  • bent — Bent is the past tense and past participle of bend.
  • cockeyed — If you say that an idea or scheme is cockeyed, you mean that you think it is very unlikely to succeed.

adjective catawampus

Antonyms for catawampus

adj catawampus

  • honest — honorable in principles, intentions, and actions; upright and fair: an honest person.
  • lawful — allowed or permitted by law; not contrary to law: a lawful enterprise.
  • moral — of, relating to, or concerned with the principles or rules of right conduct or the distinction between right and wrong; ethical: moral attitudes.
  • straight — without a bend, angle, or curve; not curved; direct: a straight path.
  • untwisted — not twisted.

Top questions with catawampus

  • what does catawampus mean?

See also

Matching words

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