kitty

¹ American  

[kit-ee] / ˈkɪt i /

noun

plural

kitties

1. a kitten.

2. a pet name for a cat.

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kitty ² American  

[kit-ee] / ˈkɪt i /

noun

plural

kitties

1. a pool or reserve of money, often collected from a number of persons or sources and designated for a particular purpose specified by the contributors.

2. Cards.

   1. a pool into which players in a game put a certain amount of their winnings for some special purpose, as to pay for refreshments.

   2. the pot, or a special pot, for the collection of forfeits or payments for certain high hands.

   3. widow.

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Kitty ³ American  

[kit-ee] / ˈkɪt i /

noun

1. a female given name, form of Katherine or Catherine.

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kitty ¹ British  

/ ˈkɪtɪ /

noun

1. the pool of bets in certain gambling games

2. any shared fund of money, etc

3. (in bowls) the jack

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kitty ² British  

/ ˈkɪtɪ /

noun

1. a diminutive or affectionate name for a kitten cat 1

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Etymology

Origin of kitty¹

First recorded in 1710–20; kitt(en) + -y ²

Origin of kitty²

First recorded in 1815–25; kit ¹ + -y ²

Example Sentences

Williamson, who allegedly fleeced Becerra’s political kitty when she owned a government relations firm before joining Newsom’s staff, pleaded not guilty to bank and tax fraud charges.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 17, 2025

Spending cash from the kitty is clean, clear and less dangerous if things go wrong.

From MarketWatch • Oct. 31, 2025

You have to assume that the transfer kitty, or most of it, has been spent, so don't hold out much hope of signing many players in January.

From BBC • Oct. 20, 2025

A public crowdfunding campaign raised bail money, but the kitty quickly ran dry, leaving many defendants stuck in high-security prisons awaiting trial.

From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 9, 2025

He slept like a little warm kitty and breathed very quiet.

From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers

Related Words

• kitten