feli-, felin-, felino-

Killing a cat or cats; feline-slaughter: In Medieval times, the townspeople would engage in felicide, killing all the cats because they were suspected of being evil creatures.

An animal of the cat family: As children Jesse and Mary always had a pet felid, or two, in the house because they liked to play with kittens and have them around. But then they grew up to full size!

Characteristic of felines: The felid purr that Lorna could hear at the foot of her bed at night was a comforting sound because it meant that her kitty was sleeping in comfort.

Cats; a cosmopolitan family containing about thirty-five species of small to large carnivorous mammals including the cheetah, the cougar (puma), the ocelot, the lynx, the bobcat, the lion, the tiger, the leopard, and the jaguar; most of them inhabit terrestrial (land) and arboreal (forest) areas: While on their hiking trip through the mountains, Peter and John saw some different members of the Felidae family, which included bobcats and mountain lions.

A reference to the body or shape of a felid: For a costume party, Jean's sister dressed up in a feliform outfit, thus disguising herself as a cat.

Belonging to or typical of animals of the cat family, including lions, tigers, leopards, and domestic cats: Most people are better acquainted with domestic felines than those of the wild species.

When Sally sees her tabby creeping forward toward a mouse, trying not to scare it away before she can pounce, then she's definitely being a stealthy feline.

During mankind's history, felines have even been worshipped as deities; and they never let their owners forget it.

Among the ancient Egyptians, felines were considered deities and there are those in these modern times who believe that cats still hold places of honor and special attention!

 

1. A reference to members of the felid family: Most domestic cats share a similar feline behavior in that they usually have nice fur and are very friendly with their owners and other members of the family.

2. Similar to a cat, especially in graceful movement or stealthiness: Sam, the burglar, had very feline movements and so he was able to climb silently over the roof tops to escape detection. © ALL rights are reserved.

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An infectious viral disease of the members of the feline family which causes vomiting and diarrhea and is often fatal: Sadly, Lina's kitty recently died of feline distemper.

An illness of the nose, throat, and sinus area of felids which is very similar to the common cold in humans: Olive's Egyptian cat was ill and it was diagnosed by the veterinarian as having a feline upper respiratory infection, a dangerous condition but treatable with medications.

In tabbies, these feline upper respiratory infections, which are common and very contagious, are more common in areas associated with overcrowding and poor sanitation, for example in catteries and rescue shelters and also in outdoor feral cat populations (a feral cat or other animal is one that lives in a wild state but was once kept as a pet or lived on a farm).

Several organisms, both bacterial and viral, can cause the feline upper respiratory infection and the two primary viruses usually are feline herpesvirus-1 (FHV) and feline calicivirus (FCV).

Feline Chlamydia, a bacterial infection, can also result in feline upper respiratory tract infections, as well as other organisms which are spread from felid to kitty through eye, nasal, and oral secretions.

A reference to, or relating to, how a person imitates, acts or behaves like a cat: After reading the mystery story, Janet smiled felinely imagining herself solving the crime.

The state of being like a tabby: There was a quality of felineness in the walk of the actress Joan Crawford as she stealthily moved like an Abyssinian cat.

It was said that the actress Barbara Stanwick studied the walk of panthers before some of her roles in which she displayed a special felineness in her movements.

The quality of having an adult kitty-like disposition or having the typical characteristics of the kitten species: Natasha, the actress, was often told she possessed a felinity, especially in the quality of her voice and in her subtle movements.

A person who has a fondness or love of cats: Despite the fact that Carol is a felinophile and would love to have several tabbies, she lives in an apartment building and is permitted to have no more than two of them at any time.

An abnormal hatred of felids: Steven's felinophobia sometimes handicaps him and he is unable to go outside his home for fear of encountering any kind of cat.

Shirley had gatophobia and was quite afraid to go to the neighbors to visit because their cat always wanted to jump up on her lap and be petted.

The scenes shown here represent an actual attack by a cat on a postal-delivery woman in Germany whenever she tried to deliver the mail. According to a German TV presentation, the cat would attack the postal-woman when she tried to deliver mail to the house. Did the cat resent an invasion of its territory or did it simply have an abnormal hatred of uniforms?

Whatever the reason for the feline's behavior, its owner had to pick up his mail at a neighborhood bar because he refused to restrict the freedom of his cat to come and go whenever it desired.

Someone who has a fondness and a love for tabbies: Rene's grandmother is an example of a philofelinist who always had an abnormal number of alley cats, calico cats, and tomcats living with her.