let the cat out of the bag

let the cat out of the bag

English

WOTD – 6 June 2009

Etymology

(Mid-1700s) The inverse of the idiom pig in a poke. If a dishonest merchant tries to sell a cat as a pig and the cat comes out or is taken out of the bag, the merchant's secret is disclosed.[1][2]

Pronunciation

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Verb

let the cat out of the bag (third-person singular simple present lets the cat out of the bag, present participle letting the cat out of the bag, simple past and past participle let the cat out of the bag)

1. (idiomatic) To disclose a secret; to let a secret be known, often inadvertently.

   It was going to be a surprise party until someone let the cat out of the bag.

   • 1849, Currer Bell [pseudonym; Charlotte Brontë], Shirley. A Tale. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Smith, Elder and Co., […], OCLC 84390265:

     He proved himself as decent, decorous, and conscientious as Peter was rampant, boisterous, and — This last epithet I choose to suppress, because it would let the cat out of the bag.

Synonyms

• (to let a secret be known): spill the beans, talk, tattle, blab, peach (obsolete), babble, sing

Translations

to disclose a secret, often inadvertently

Afrikaans: die aap uit die mou laat (af), die kat uit die sak laat Breton: reiñ avel d'ar c'had (br) Czech: prořeknout se, vybreptat to Danish: slippe katten ud af sækken Finnish: möläyttää julki French: vendre la mèche (fr) Galician: irse da lingua German: die Katze aus dem Sack lassen (de) Hebrew: יצא המרצע מן השק‎ (he) (yatsá hamartséa' min hasak) Icelandic: tala af sér, leysa frá skjóðunni Italian: spifferare (it) Luxembourgish: d'Kaz aus dem Sak loossen Mandarin: 露馅 (zh) Norwegian: slippe katta ut av sekken Polish: wypuścić kota z worka Portuguese: dar com a língua nos dentes (pt) Russian: вы́нести сор из избы (výnesti sor iz izby) Scottish Gaelic: leig mu sgaoil e Spanish: irse de la lengua (es), levantar la liebre, descubrirse el pastel, destapar la olla

See also

• pig in a poke
• buy a pup
• sell a pup
• be sold a pup
• get off one's chest
• bare one's breast

References

1. “The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms”, in (please provide the title of the work)‎, accessed 21 November 2010, archived from the original on 2011-03-18