English Idioms from A-Z

No Room To Swing A Cat

The idiom "no room to swing a cat" means that a place or room is very small and cramped. It is often used to describe a space that is too small to move around comfortably or to do anything in.

The origin of this phrase is not clear, but it is believed to have come from the practice of sailors who used to punish their crew members by whipping them with a cat-o'-nine-tails. In the confined space of a ship's cabin, there was not enough room to swing the whip properly, hence the phrase.

You can use this idiom when you want to describe a place that is very small and cramped. For example, you might say, "The hotel room was so small that there was no room to swing a cat." Or, "The apartment was tiny, there was no room to swing a cat in the kitchen."

Overall, this idiom is a colorful and humorous way to describe a small and cramped space.


The usage of the idiom 'No Room To Swing A Cat' in a sentence

• The airplane was so cramped that there was no room to swing a cat.

• The tiny restaurant was so full that there was no room to swing a cat.

• The concert was so crowded that there was no room to swing a cat.

• The narrow alleyway was so packed with people that there was no room to swing a cat.

• My apartment is so small, there is no room to swing a cat.

• The parking lot was so crowded that there was no room to swing a cat.

• The prison cell was so small that there was no room to swing a cat.

• The parking lot was so crowded that there was no room to swing a cat.

• The auditorium was so packed with people that there was no room to swing a cat.

• The narrow streets of the medieval town were so congested that there was no room to swing a cat.

• The airplane cabin was so cramped that there was no room to swing a cat.

• There was no room to swing a cat in the tiny apartment where the student lived.

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