Gib Cat
Preserved but no longer current.
A tom-cat. The male cat used to be called Gilbert. Tibert or Tybalt (q.v.) is the French form of Gilbert, and hence Chaucer, or whoever it was that translated that part of the Romance of the Rose, renders "Thibert le Cas" by "Gibbe, our Cat" (line 6204). Generally used of a castrated cat.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Gib Cat” mean?
A tom-cat. The male cat used to be called Gilbert. Tibert or Tybalt (q.v.) is the French form of Gilbert, and hence Chaucer, or whoever it was that translated that part of the Romance of the Rose, renders "Thibert le Cas" by "Gibbe, our Cat" (line 6204). Generally used of a castrated cat.
Is “Gib Cat” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.