catnip

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See also: cat-nip and cat nip

English

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Nepeta cataria flowers

Etymology

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Compound of cat +‎ nep, nip (“catnip”), from Middle English nep, from Old English nepte, from Proto-West Germanic *nepetā, from Latin nepeta (“catnip”). Compare earlier catmint (“catnip”), from Middle English catt mynte, which very likely existed in Old English (as *cattes minte) as well.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈkætnɪp/
  • Audio (US):(file)

Noun

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catnip (countable and uncountable, plural catnips)

  1. Any of the about 250 species of flowering plant of the genus Nepeta, family Lamiaceae, certain of which are said to have medicinal qualities.
    Synonyms: catmint, catwort
  2. Nepeta cataria and Nepeta grandiflora (and perhaps other species), which are well-known for causing an apparently harmless pheromone-based intoxication among certain cats.
    Coordinate term: silver vine
    Some cats go bonkers over catnip; others ignore it.
    • 2021 January 20, Sofia Moutinho, “Why cats are crazy for catnip”, in Science‎[1], →DOI:
      But exactly how catnip—and a substitute, known as silver vine—produce this feline high has long been a mystery. Now, a study suggests the key intoxicating chemicals in the plants activate cats’ opioid systems much like heroin and morphine do in people.
  3. (figurative) Something that causes excitement or interest.
    • 2015 April 2, James Somers, “Toolkits for the Mind”, in MIT Technology Review‎[2]:
      The language’s[OCaml's] rigor is like catnip to some people, though, giving Jane Street an unusual advantage in the tight hiring market for programmers.
    • 2016 October 24, Owen Gibson, “Is the unthinkable happening – are people finally switching the football off?”, in The Guardian‎[3], London:
      Since Rupert Murdoch famously bet the farm on Premier League football to rescue Sky TV in 1991, it has been the catnip that has underpinned subscriber loyalty and, even in a far more complicated media landscape, is seen as so vital as to be worth almost any price.
    • 2017 May 31, David Z. Morris, “The Rise of Cryptocurrency Ponzi Schemes”, in The Atlantic‎[4]:
      Unlike IPOs, however, ICOs are catnip for scammers.
    • 2019 September 14, Elizabeth Paton, “A Fashion/Food Blowout in the Shadow of Brexit”, in New York Times‎[5]:
      This hot new Shoreditch trattoria already is catnip for the style set.

Derived terms

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Translations

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Further reading

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Anagrams

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Spanish

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Noun

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catnip m (plural catnips)

  1. catnip
    Synonyms: nébeda, menta de gato
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