verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
2.
(of cats) to give birth; bear.
Origin
1350-1400;Middle Englishkitoun, apparently blend of kitelingkitling and Middle Frenchchitoun, variant of chaton kitten
Related forms
kittenlike, adjective
Examples from the web for kitten
But she is perfectly natural, and while perfectly amoral, no more immoral than a bird or a kitten-Times.
Everybody loves a puppy or kitten, well almost everybody.
kitten food, with its even higher protein and fat levels, is even less appropriate for dogs.
He gave the names of all her animals-the bunny, the kitten, the puppy.
The kitten was not tested but is suspected to have died of rabies.
To my surprise, there he stood, with a kitten in his hands.
He didn't give up and kept looking and found the kitten hidden in the trailer bay.
The current case involves a six-month old, unvaccinated kitten that bit his owner.
They should form a circle and join hands around the kitten.
British Dictionary definitions for kitten
kitten
/ˈkɪtən/
noun
1.
a young cat
2.
(Brit, informal) have kittens, have a canary, to react with disapproval, anxiety, etc: she had kittens when she got the bill US equivalent have a cow
verb
3.
(of cats) to give birth to (young)
Derived Forms
kitten-like, adjective
Word Origin
C14: from Old Northern French caton, from cat1; probably influenced by Middle English kiteling
Word Origin and History for kitten
n.
late 14c., probably from an Anglo-French variant of Old French chitoun (Old North French caton) "little cat," from chat "cat," from Late Latin cattus (see cat). Applied playfully to a young girl, a sweetheart, from 1870.