Definitions for catbird seat
cat·bird seat

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. catbird seatnoun

   Expression used to describe an enviable position, often one of great advantage.

2. Etymology: The expression may originate in regards to the gray catbird (Dumetella carolinensis), as it was in use in the 19th century in the southern United States. It was featured in the 1942 short story "The Catbird Seat" by James Thurber, and popularized by baseball commentator Red Barber, and often referred to baseball. The expression according to James Thurber comes from the observation of the catbird (an Australian bird) of the family ptilonorhynchidae. Some of the male birds will assemble several hundred colored rocks or shells, arranging them in a remarkable artistic display, in order to build a "seat" atop which his mate will eventually be enthroned.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Catbird seat

   "The catbird seat" is an idiomatic phrase used to describe an enviable position, often in terms of having the upper hand or greater advantage in any type of dealing among parties. It derives from the secluded perch on which the gray catbird makes mocking calls.

WikidataRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. Catbird seat

   "The catbird seat" is an idiomatic phrase used to describe an enviable position, often in terms of having the upper hand or greater advantage in all types of dealings among parties. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first recorded usage occurred in a 1942 humorous short story by James Thurber titled "The Catbird Seat," which features a character, Mrs. Barrows, who likes to use the phrase. Another character, Joey Hart, explains that Mrs. Barrows must have picked up the expression from Red Barber, a baseball broadcaster, and that to Barber "sitting in the catbird seat" meant "'sitting pretty,' like a batter with three balls and no strikes on him." The phrase "In the catbird seat" was among the numerous folksy expressions used by Barber. According to Barber's daughter, after her father read Thurber's story, he began using the phrase "in the catbird seat." However, according to "Colonel" Bob Edwards's book Fridays with Red, Barber claimed that Thurber got this and many other expressions from him, and that Barber had first heard the term used during a poker game in Cincinnati during the Great Depression. Barber himself also put forth this version of events in his 1968 autobiography, Rhubarb in the Catbird Seat.

How to pronounce catbird seat?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say catbird seat in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of catbird seat in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of catbird seat in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of catbird seat in a Sentence

1. Ryan Lizza:

   If you look at the national polls, his average is 37%. So the non-Trump vote is a lot more than that, the lack of consolidation is putting him in the catbird seat.

References

1. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Catbird_Seat
2. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catbird_Seat
3. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=catbird seat