three-a-cat: meaning, definition, pronunciation and examples
Very lowInformal, historical, sports
Quick answer
What does “three-a-cat” mean?
A form of cricket played with three players on each side.
Audio
Pronunciation
Definition
Meaning and Definition
A form of cricket played with three players on each side.
An informal or historical cricket match involving a small number of players, often three per team.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Exclusively used in British English due to cricket's historical and cultural presence in the UK and Commonwealth. American English lacks an equivalent term.
Connotations
Nostalgic or historical reference to informal, small-scale cricket matches.
Frequency
Extremely rare in American English; even in British English, it is a low-frequency, specialized term.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Usage
Meaning in Context
Business
Not used.
Academic
Only in historical or sports studies contexts.
Everyday
Rare, only among cricket enthusiasts or in historical references.
Technical
In cricket terminology, refers to a specific type of informal match.
Vocabulary
Synonyms of “three-a-cat”
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms of “three-a-cat”
Watch out
Common Mistakes When Using “three-a-cat”
- Misspelling as 'three a cat' without hyphens, or confusing it with 'three-a-side' for other sports.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
It is rarely played in organised form, but informal versions of cricket with few players might be considered similar.
No, by definition it is three players per side, but the term is sometimes used loosely for any small-sided cricket.
The term likely comes from the practice of having three players bat in turn, with 'cat' being a colloquial term for the game or the ball.
Three-a-cat is an informal, small-sided game, while test cricket is the highest form of the sport played between national teams over five days.
A form of cricket played with three players on each side.
Three-a-cat is usually informal, historical, sports in register.
Three-a-cat: in British English it is pronounced /ˌθriː ə ˈkæt/, and in American English it is pronounced /ˌθri ə ˈkæt/. Tap the audio buttons above to hear it.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine three cats playing cricket—each cat represents one of the three players on a team.
Conceptual Metaphor
Not applicable.
Practice
Quiz
What does 'three-a-cat' refer to?