What a rich tapestry of language we have. I remember when I was young that my mother would use the expression ‘She is the cat’s mother’ if I ever said she when referring to a girl or woman in the room.

I always thought yeah what ever

Recently I have seen (Heard) a resurgence in the expression and I have often wondered at the root of this term. So today I had a little search about for it and here is what I have discovered

Male cat = Tom

Female cat = She

so, by extension ‘She is the cat’s Mother’

Hmmmm So what about all the cats whom have never had litters??

Doesn’t matter She refers to the Sex and English speaking mothers the world over have been I assume confusing their sons and daughters for a very long time.

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Originally published on DavidLMackie.com. This recovered copy was captured on 2016-02-27. View the archived original.