Contextualizebeta

pussyfoot

verb
/ˈpʊs.iˌfʊt/UK

Etymology

From pussy (“feline”) + foot; because of the light and careful tread of cats.

  1. inherited from *pṓds✻
  2. inherited from *fōts✻
  3. inherited from *fōt✻
  4. inherited from fōt
  5. inherited from fot
  6. compounded as pussyfoot — “pussy + foot”

Definitions

  1. To move silently, stealthily, or furtively.

  2. To act timidly or cautiously.

    • — So are you going to practice what you’re preaching and stop pussyfooting around with Faye? — Hey, I’m 0 for 1 when it comes to practicing what I preach. These feet stay pussied for the time being.
    • The TSSA union said the Government should "stop pussyfooting around" and place Euston at the heart of the transformative rail project.

  3. To use euphemistic language or circumlocution.

    • "Then you talk up! And plain! What's there to be so pussyfooting about?"
  4. ›+ 1 more definition

    1. A teetotaller.

      • "We keep off that road like a pussyfoot keeps off whiskey. Get it out of your bean that we're exploring a deserted ruin."

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for pussyfoot. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA