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A tomcat is a male cat. Often it carries a picture with it: a big, rough, un-neutered male who wanders the neighbourhood at night, gets into fights, and comes home with a torn ear.
A tomcat istomcat是 a male cat公貓。 Often it carries a picture with it常常帶著這樣的畫面： a big, rough, un-neutered male一隻高大、粗野、沒結紮的公貓， who wanders the neighbourhood at night晚上在附近遊蕩， gets into fights到處打架， and comes home with a torn ear回家時耳朵還被咬破。
That is why people also just say 'a tom' — 'is it a tom or a queen?' is how a cat breeder asks about sex, with 'queen' being the female. In ordinary talk most people simply say 'a male cat', and 'tomcat' sounds slightly old-fashioned or slightly .
That is why people also just say 'a tom'這也是為什麼大家也會直接說「a tom」—— 'is it a tom or a queen?' is how a cat breeder asks about sex「is it a tom or a queen?」是養貓的人問公母的方式， with 'queen' being the female「queen」指的是母貓。 In ordinary talk most people simply say 'a male cat'平常說話大家大多就直接說「a male cat」， and 'tomcat' sounds slightly old-fashioned or slightly affectionate而「tomcat」聽起來有點老派，或帶點親暱感。
There is also a verb, 'to tomcat around', said of a man who moves from woman to woman — it is old slang, a bit , a bit , and you will meet it in songs and films more than in speech.
There is also a verb, 'to tomcat around'還有一個動詞「to tomcat around」， said of a man who moves from woman to woman用來說一個男人在女人之間到處拈花惹草—— it is old slang這是老派的俚語， a bit disapproving, a bit amused帶點不以為然，又帶點好笑， and you will meet it in songs and films more than in speech你在歌曲和電影裡遇到它的機會，比在日常對話裡多。
One thing to keep separate: Apache Tomcat, the web server that programmers use, is a piece of software named after the animal. If you are reading a technical document and see 'Tomcat', it has nothing to do with cats at all.
One thing to keep separate有一件事要分清楚： Apache Tomcat, the web server that programmers use程式設計師用的網頁伺服器Apache Tomcat， is a piece of software named after the animal是一套以這種動物命名的軟體。 If you are reading a technical document and see 'Tomcat'如果你在看技術文件時看到「Tomcat」， it has nothing to do with cats at all那跟貓一點關係都沒有。
組成Tom（男子名，代表『男的』）+ cat（貓）. The name spread from a 1760 book, The Life and Adventures of a Cat, whose male cat was called Tom — before that, English called a male cat a 'gib'.
同家族的字
- tomboysame Tom = 'boy, male'; a girl who plays like a boy
- tomfoolerysame Tom, used for 'an ordinary man' — here, a foolish one
原始詞典資料4 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
tomcatnoun
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A tom (male cat).
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informalA promiscuous man.
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An insect of the order Coleoptera referring to certain species of rove beetles, particularly in the genus Paederus, known for secreting a potent irritant, pederin, which can cause severe skin irritation and blistering when contacted.
tomcatverb
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informalTo prowl for sexual gratification.
- He would not go roaming the streets tom-catting like Mr Schick.
資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。