Kittened

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. A young cat that has recently been born or is still in its early stages of development
2. referring to the behavior or characteristics typically associated with such young felines
3. describing the nurturing and playful aspects attributed to baby cats

Etymology: "Kitten" began as a diminutive. English took the noun from Anglo-Norman "chitoun" and Old French "chaton," meaning little "chat" (cat). That French word descends from Late Latin "cattus," so a kitten is, at root, a little cat. English often turns nouns into verbs, and "to kitten" is one of them. It first meant to give birth to kittens, and it later extended to the playful, pouncing, bounding behavior of young cats. "Kittened" is the past form of that verb, here used in its behavioral sense to describe someone acting with a kitten's frisky energy.

Synonyms: gave birth to kittens, bred, reproduced