Meaning
When the person in authority is absent, the people under their supervision relax, bend the rules, or enjoy themselves. Usually said half-humorously or with a knowing shrug, and frequently shortened to just 'the cat's away', with the rest understood. Conversational and usually jocular or tolerant rather than seriously accusatory. Regional use: General English.
Origin
The idea is old and international, with parallels in Spanish, German, French, Russian, and many other languages. A documented precursor is the medieval Latin proverb 'dum felis dormit, mus gaudet' - when the cat sleeps, the mouse rejoices. Dating the English wording is less tidy: The History of English dates a vernacular English version to around 1470 and notes use in Shakespeare's Henry V (1599), while the American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms, quoted at Dictionary.com, calls it a proverb 'since about 1600'. The mismatch between these dates reflects thin early evidence rather than a settled first use, so any single origin year should be treated as approximate.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- The cat's away
- When the cat's away, the mice do play
- While the cat's away, mice will play
- While the cat's away, the mice will play
Usage Examples
- With the manager on leave, the team's long lunches stretched into whole afternoons - while the cat's away, the mice will play.
- The children had ice cream for dinner while their babysitter scrolled her phone; when the cat's away, the mice will play.
- You cannot leave the interns unsupervised every Friday and expect deadlines to hold - when the cat's away, the mice will play.