Pussy
- This article is about the word pussy. For the village in France, see Pussy, France.
Pussy is an English word meaning cat. In English slang, it refers to the vulva and vagina, among other definitions.
Etymology
The origins of the word are unknown.
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) says that the word puss is common to several Germanic languages, usually as a call name for the cat — not a synonym for "cat", as it is in English.
The OED and Webster's Third International Dictionary point out similarities with words including:-
- Old Norse, pūss (pocket)
- Old Saxon pūse (vulva)
- Old English pusa (bag)
The medieval French word pucelle referred to a young adolescent girl or a virgin, although this comes from a slang term for virginity puce (= flea) rather than referring to cats (but cf. French chatte (female cat), a current vulgarism for the female pudenda). In the 17th century, the term was also used to refer to women in general.
Uses
Cat and similar
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, puss was used as a "call-name" for cats in both German and English, but pussy was used in English more as a synonym for "cat": compare "pussycat". In addition to cats, the word was also used for rabbits and hares as well as a humorous name for tigers. In the 19th century, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, the meaning was extended "in childish speech, applied to anything soft and furry", as in pussy willow. In thieves' slang, it meant "fur coat".
To pussyfoot around the question or point means to be evasive, cautious, or conceal one's opinions. The reference is to the careful soft tread of the cat and has no vulgar implications, other than obvious ties to weakness, which "pussy" sometimes connotes.
Genitalia
The word "pussy" often refers to the female genitalia. It was not included in George Carlin's list of seven dirty words, as it can be used in the sense of kitty, and George Carlin's list was remarking upon words that can never be said on television. Most dictionaries mark the anatomical meaning as "vulgar" or "offensive" and its use is frowned upon in polite company.
Weakness
The meaning "weak or cowardly person" has a separate etymology. Websters 1913 Revised Unabridged Dictionary lists this version of pussy as an alternate spelling of "pursy," an otherwise obsolete English word meaning "fat and short-breathed; fat, short, and thick; swelled with pampering ..."[1] The interpetation is often misconstrued, it contains multi-meanings which some are consider derogatory. [2] In fact, when pussy appears in the earlier 1828 edition of the dictionary, this definition is presented for the word, while the older pursy is simply offered as a "corrupt orthography."
Pursy (pronounced with a short u, and with the r slurred or silent) was in turn derived from an Old French word variously spelled pourcif, poulsif, poussif, meaning "to push, thrust, or heave." In this sense, it is cognate with the modern French verb pousser, also meaning "to push."
It has been informally suggested in folk etymology that it is a shortened form of the word "pusillanimous" which is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as "showing a lack of courage or determination" or cowardly. This meaning would seem to be consistent with the intention of the word "pussy" when used as an insult toward a man. This term, however, comes from the Latin words pusillus (petty) and animus (spirit) and is unrelated to the Germanic derivations of puss and pussy.
The word pussy can also be used in a derogatory sense to refer to a male who is not considered sufficiently masculine (see Gender role). When used in this sense, it carries the implication of being easily fatigued, weak or cowardly.
Men dominated by women (particularly their partners or spouses and at one time referred to as 'Hen-pecked') can be referred to as pussy-whipped (or simply whipped in slightly more polite society or media).
Word-play between meanings
The double entendre has been used for over a hundred years by performers, including the late 19th-century vaudeville act, the Barrison Sisters, who performed the notorious routine "Do You Want To See My Pussy?" (see entry for more); the Funkadelic song "Pussy", and the character Pussy Galore in the James Bond series as well as the 1983 film, Octopussy. On his album, The Gold Experience, Prince sings a song about a female protagonist named Pussy Control. The Belgian band, Lords of Acid, also has a song called Pussy, almost every line of which is a double entendre. [3]
One surprisingly risqué joke, especially for 1940, appears in the W.C. Fields movie, The Bank Dick. The bar that Fields frequently attends (tended by Shemp Howard) is called the "Black Pussy Cat", with "Black Pussy" arched over "Cat" to give it some visual separation. However, it was apparently tame enough that the Hays Office did not take action.
Another notable usage is in the British comedy Are You Being Served?. The character Mrs. Slocombe is often heard to be concerned with the welfare of her pussy (cat), presumably unaware of the secondary meaning. This joke was also used with other cast members of the show, showing their unawareness, with lines such as "I hope this (meeting) won't take very long, it's very unfair on Mrs. Slocombe's pussy". In the episode “Calling All Customers,” Mrs. Slocombe calls a lonely trucker on Mr. Humphries’ CB radio, setting up perhaps the most intricate pussy joke of the series. He (the trucker) tells her he’s hauling dynamite, and proceeds to ask her about her interests. She notes gardening, but that her pussy is her favorite hobby. She exclaims that she has a mantle full of trophies and that it wins a medal every time she shows it. Then follows the sound of screeching tires and an explosion. Mr. Humphries laments “He’s pulled off for a coffee.”
The double meaning of the word was exploited in a 2005 episode of the American comedy program Arrested Development, where the word was censored if used as an insult, but not censored if used to mean sweet or gentle (as in pussycat). This also can apply to using pussy as a word for weak. On the TV series Drawn Together, the episode "Alzheimer's That Ends Well" features yet another instance of the above. In this episode, Princess Clara receives an "extreme vaginal makeover," but continually exclaims that something is wrong. In one scene, she claims it has freckles, to which Wooldoor replies, "Lots of pussies have freckles, like Ron Howard." In the South Park episode "Fun with Veal", after giving up meat temporarily, Stan Marsh discovers his body is covered in sores. The doctor informs Stan that the sores are actually tiny vaginas, and that not eating meat is turning Stan into "a giant pussy". In neither of these latter two instances is the word censored.
See also
- Profanity
- Obscenity
- Pussy Galore (disambiguation)
- Bitch and Animal, a pair of singers who sang songs including "Pussy Manifesto"
External links
- Don't be so beastly! by Justine Hankins. The Guardian, June 14, 2003
- Pussy This, Pussy That by Aura Bogado, 2002.
- Complete lyrics to the George Clinton song from the Motherpage
If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.