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    From where comes the saying "Has the cat got your tongue?"

    Question #95285. Asked by star_gazer. (May 02 08 9:01 PM)


    hootrs23

    		The expression "cat got your Tongue" comes from the English sailing ship days, and refers to the cat of nine tails, if the captain or other officer told someone something in secrecy he would 'get the cat' if he was to tell the others.
    http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/5/messages/494.html

    May 02 08, 9:39 PM
    zbeckabee

    		Seems like nobody knows for sure. Here are a FEW of the theories:

    Theory #1
    The saying comes from the Middle East, where as punishment, liars had their tongues ripped out and fed to the king's cats.

    Theory #2
    Fear of a whipping with a cat-o'-nine-tails, or "cat" for short, could paralyze a victim into silence.

    Theory #3
    The expression comes from the Middle Ages when witches were greatly feared and often put to death. It was believed that if you saw a witch, her cat would somehow "steal" or control your tongue so you couldn't report the sighting.

    Theory #4
    This one comes from our old friend Evan Morris, the Word Detective: "There's no particular logic to 'cat got your tongue,' except that cats have served as the object of human myth and metaphor for thousands of years."

    http://ask.yahoo.com/20061102.html

    May 03 08, 4:44 AM

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