Idiom
The cat's pajamas
The cat's pajamas is old-fashioned slang for a person or thing that is excellent, stylish or the very best.
How people use it
People use it today mostly for fun, with a deliberate 1920s flavor (Grandpa thinks his new recliner is the cat's pajamas). It works like the bee's knees and the cat's whiskers, which mean the same thing. It is informal and playful, and it can sound gently mocking when someone seems too pleased with themselves (he thinks he's the cat's pajamas). British writers use a different spelling of the last word.
Examples
- Maya thinks her new electric bike is the cat's pajamas.
- In the old movie, the dancer says the jazz band is the cat's pajamas.
- Ben strutted around in his new suit like he was the cat's pajamas.
Where it comes from
The phrase is American slang from the 1920s, when young people enjoyed inventing silly animal expressions for anything wonderful, such as the bee's knees and the eel's ankles. Pajamas were still fairly new and fashionable in the West at the time, which may explain the choice. A story that the phrase honors a tailor named E. B. Katz is often repeated, but there is no evidence for it.
Check yourself
1. What does it mean to call something the cat's pajamas?
Answer: It is excellent. The cat's pajamas is playful 1920s slang for something wonderful.
2. Which phrase means about the same thing?
Answer: The bee's knees. The bee's knees is another 1920s phrase for something excellent. The other two mean ordinary.
Similar idioms
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