catnip en · NOUN
Pronunciation
Etymology
Compound of cat + nep, nip (“catnip”), from Middle English nep, from Old English nepte, from Proto-West Germanic *nepetā, from Latin nepeta (“catnip”). Compare earlier catmint (“catnip”), from Middle English catt mynte, which very likely existed in Old English (as *cattes minte) as well.
Meanings
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(countable, uncountable) Any of the about 250 species of flowering plant of the genus Nepeta, family Lamiaceae, certain of which are said to have medicinal qualities.
Heavy mulching should help with winter survival of hardy, fragrant leaved perennials like lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), tansy (Tanacetum vulgare), catnip (Nepeta mussini), sage (Salvia officinalis), mint, oregano (Origanum vulgare) and thyme (Thymus species).
1991 August 4, Linda Yang, “Garden Q. & A.”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 25 May 2015:
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(countable, uncountable) Any of the about 250 species of flowering plant of the genus Nepeta, family Lamiaceae, certain of which are said to have medicinal qualities. ▸ Nepeta cataria and Nepeta grandiflora (and perhaps other species), which are well-known for causing an apparently harmless pheromone-based intoxication among certain cats.
Some cats go bonkers over catnip; others ignore it.
But exactly how catnip—and a substitute, known as silver vine—produce this feline high has long been a mystery. Now, a study suggests the key intoxicating chemicals in the plants activate cats’ opioid systems much like heroin and morphine do in people.
2021 January 20, Sofia Moutinho, “Why cats are crazy for catnip”, in Science, Washington, D.C.: American Association for the Advancement of Science, →DOI, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 20 Jan 2021:
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(countable, figuratively, uncountable) Something that causes excitement or interest.
This hot new Shoreditch trattoria already is catnip for the style set.
2019 September 14, Elizabeth Paton, “A Fashion/Food Blowout in the Shadow of Brexit”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 14 Sep 2019:Their outrage was catnip to the trolls who had deepfaked the video.
Since Rupert Murdoch famously bet the farm on Premier League football to rescue Sky TV in 1991, it has been the catnip that has underpinned subscriber loyalty and, even in a far more complicated media landscape, is seen as so vital as to be worth almost any price.
2016 October 24, Owen Gibson, “Is the unthinkable happening – are people finally switching the football off?”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 25 Oct 2016:Unlike IPOs, however, ICOs are catnip for scammers.
2017 May 31, David Z. Morris, “The Rise of Cryptocurrency Ponzi Schemes”, in Jeffrey Goldberg, editor, The Atlantic, Washington, D.C.: The Atlantic Monthly Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 31 May 2017:Near-synonym: crack
The language [OCaml]’s rigor is like catnip to some people, though, giving Jane Street an unusual advantage in the tight hiring market for programmers.
2015 April 2, James Somers, “Toolkits for the Mind”, in MIT Technology Review, Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Technology Review, →OCLC, archived from the original on 14 Aug 2020:While some might see xAI’s new anime avatars as a harmless experiment, they’re emotional catnip for vulnerable users.
2025 July 16, Marcus Mendes, “Grok may be breaking App Store rules with sexualized AI chatbots, and that’s not the only problem”, in 9to5Mac, Cupertino, Calif., archived from the original on 16 Jul 2025:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| cat-nip | alternative | lexicographic | |
| catnips | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| cat nip | alternative | lexicographic |
Coordinates
bait · silver vine · forbidden fruit
Deriveds
Descendants
Synonyms
catmint · crack · catwort · catwort · catmint
Translations (122)
hu macskamenta (plant of the genus Nepeta) · bg ко́тешка трева́ (plant of the genus Nepeta) · fi aitokissanminttu (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · hsb prawy kocornik (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · no kattemynte (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · eo katmento (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · gl herba gateira (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · fr cataire (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · uk кото́вник (plant of the genus Nepeta) · cv кушак пӳсӗр курӑкӗ (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · eo katario (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ang cattes minte (plant of the genus Nepeta) · da katteurt (plant of the genus Nepeta) · bg ба́бица (plant of the genus Nepeta) · hy կատվադաղձ (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ca herba gatera (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · sh mačija metvica (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · fi kissanminttu (plant of the genus Nepeta) · sh macina metvica (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · sh mačija trava (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · no kattemynter (plant of the genus Nepeta) · az pişiknanəsi (plant of the genus Nepeta) · eu katu-belar (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · grc νέπετος (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · es gatera (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ca nepta (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · sv nepetasläktet (plant of the genus Nepeta) · fa نعناع گربهای (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · eo katherbo (plant of the genus Nepeta) · es nébeda (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ko 개박하 (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · fr chataire (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · de Faszination (something that causes excitement or interest) · sl mačja meta (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ka კატაპიტნა (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ro iarba-mâței (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · vi cỏ mèo (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ro cătușnică (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · lt paprastoji katžolė (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · de Katzenminze (plant of the genus Nepeta) · tr yaban sümbülü (plant of the genus Nepeta) · fi kollinminttu (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · bg ко́ча би́лка (plant of the genus Nepeta) · az adi pişiknanəsi (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · cs šanta kočičí (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · grc καλαμίνθη (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · es hierba gatera (plant of the genus Nepeta) · de Unwiderstehlichkeit (something that causes excitement or interest) · sh potplotuša (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · grc νέπετος (plant of the genus Nepeta) · pcd iérpe-éd-cat (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · be кацямятка (plant of the genus Nepeta) · vi bạc hà mèo (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · pt erva-de-gato (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · bg ко́ча би́лка (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ga miontas cait (plant of the genus Nepeta) · bg ко́ча трева́ (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · de Echte Katzenminze (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ca herba gatera (plant of the genus Nepeta) · grc καλαμίνθη (plant of the genus Nepeta) · nl kattenkruid (plant of the genus Nepeta) · es menta gatuna (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ja イヌハッカ (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · es menta de gato (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ja イヌハッカ属 (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ru коша́чья мя́та (plant of the genus Nepeta) · bg ма́чо би́ле (plant of the genus Nepeta) · hu illatos macskamenta (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · bg ба́бица (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · mk мачкино нане (plant of the genus Nepeta) · la nepeta (plant of the genus Nepeta) · da almindelig katteurt (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · de Katzenminze (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · es gataria (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · cy mintys y gath (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ar قَطْرَمْ (plant of the genus Nepeta) · de Zugpferd (something that causes excitement or interest) · nl kattenkruid (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · bg ма́чо би́ле (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · eo katmento (plant of the genus Nepeta) · mk непе́та (plant of the genus Nepeta) · pl kocimiętka (plant of the genus Nepeta) · es albahaca de gatos (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · sv kattmynta (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · el νεπέτα (plant of the genus Nepeta) · el καλαμίθρα (plant of the genus Nepeta) · bg ко́тешка трева́ (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · sk kocúrnik obyčajný (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · sh macina trava (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · fr herbe à chat (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · it erba gatta (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · fr herbe aux chats (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · fa پونهسا (plant of the genus Nepeta) · de gefundenes Fressen (something that causes excitement or interest) · nl wild kattenkruid (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ru коша́чья мя́та (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · sl máčja méta (plant of the genus Nepeta) · tr kedi nanesi (plant of the genus Nepeta) · mk мачкино нане (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · de Objekt der Begierde (something that causes excitement or interest) · nl Nepeta (plant of the genus Nepeta) · pt erva-de-gato (plant of the genus Nepeta) · fi isokissanminttu (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · kk көкжалбыз (plant of the genus Nepeta) · bg ко́ча трева́ (plant of the genus Nepeta) · lt katžolė (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ro cătușnică (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ga mismín cait (plant of the genus Nepeta) · el γατόχορτο (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · ang nepte (plant of the genus Nepeta) · da katteurt (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · is kattarminta (plant of the genus Nepeta) · es nébeda (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · cy mint y gath (plant of the genus Nepeta) · pl kocimiętka właściwa (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · es menta de gato (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · eo katherbo (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · cmn 貓薄荷 /猫薄荷 (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ru кото́вник коша́чий (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · cmn 貓薄荷 /猫薄荷 (specific species which causes intoxication among cats) · pt nêbeda (plant of the genus Nepeta) · ro iarba-mâței (plant of the genus Nepeta)