fat cats

noun

plural of fat cat
1
as in haves
a wealthy person that last recession was particularly hard on the poor, but the fat cats barely noticed a dip in their bank accounts

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bigs
one of high position or importance within a group a candidate that has the backing of most of the party's fat cats

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of fat cats The fat cats in Congress who’ve been making a killing on Wall Street were none too pleased. — Boston Herald Editorial Staff, Boston Herald, 26 Feb. 2026 Nah, that's for the fat cats and money-grubbers. — Steph Wagner, CNBC, 1 Jan. 2026 Though many corporations could still afford suites, fat cats high-fiving while their employees lost their jobs and their companies were taking bailouts was a bad look. — John Seabrook, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for fat cats
  1. haves
  2. bigs
  3. silk stockings
  4. heavyweights
  5. capitalists
  6. big boys
  7. deep pockets
  8. big guns
Noun
  • Control is exercised through shell companies and tax haves in Switzerland led by front men who are dual nationals of Iran residing abroad.
    — Natasha Lindstaedt, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026
  • In a dwindling list of haves, the SEC very much remains a powerbroker.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
Definition of haves
Noun
  • After a dominant summer in Triple-A, Zac Veen is coming back to the bigs.
    — Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Pick-and-rolls at the top of the floor with bigs, pick-and-rolls with smalls.
    — Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of bigs
Noun
  • The record also states that the boys were wearing heavy wool coats and silk stockings in the middle of summer in Philly.
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 4 July 2026
  • In Girard’s household, at least three women would have mended his silk stockings and other clothes.
    — Emily J. Whitted, The Conversation, 29 Apr. 2026
Definition of silk stockings
Noun
  • Lawrence clocked early on that Williams had the chops to hold her own against heavyweights like Harrison Ford.
    — Maureen Lee Lenker, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026
  • There is no denying Kosmera aims to challenge hypercar heavyweights like Rimac and Koenigsegg, as well as its main domestic rival, BYD.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of heavyweights
Noun
  • What’s interesting to me, though, is every generation since the original countercultural capitalists—the baby boomers—has expressed some version of this antipathy.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 10 Aug. 2026
  • If enough people are angry at the greedy capitalists and find a rationale to blame them for their woes, the idea of socialism becomes more attractive.
    — Mike Patton, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of capitalists
Noun
  • But taking on one of Wall Street’s big boys, and then getting squashed for it, ranks right up there.
    — Liz Peek, Washington Post, 4 May 2026
  • Then the Bruins big boys decided to make a statement after that.
    — Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 30 Mar. 2026
Definition of big boys
Noun
  • The club has won 27 World Series titles in its history, but none since 2009, despite having deep pockets and a willingness to spend on premier players.
    — Bloomberg, Fortune, 11 Aug. 2026
  • But at a news conference Thursday in Lehigh Acres, DeSantis, who is term-limited, said his comment was based on whether Renner had the resources and deep pockets to win.
    — Paige Stevens, Miami Herald, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of deep pockets
Noun
  • After England have raised a glass comes a three-match one-day international series this week when India will welcome back big guns including captain Shubman Gill and legends Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
    — Paul Newman, New York Times, 12 July 2026
  • The Minnesota Wild’s big guns showed up in a big way Saturday night, and the Avs looked wobbly for the first time in this tournament in a 5-1 loss in Game 3 at Grand Casino Arena.
    — Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 10 May 2026
Definition of big guns

Browse Nearby Words

fat cat
fat cats
fate
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Fat cats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fat%20cats. Accessed 17 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Is “GIF” Pronounced “Jiff” or “Giff”?

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All