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Definition 2024

curiosity_killed_the_cat

curiosity killed the cat

English

A curious cat.

Alternative forms

care killed the cat

Proverb

curiosity killed the cat

One should not be curious about things that can be dangerous.

Translations

undue curiosity is dangerous

Catalan: la curiositat va matar el gat
Chinese:
Mandarin: 好奇惹禍, 好奇惹祸 ‎(hàoqí rěhuò)
Czech: nebuď zvědavej, budeš brzo starej
Estonian: uudishimu tappis kassi
Finnish: uteliaisuus kissan tappoi
French: la curiosité est un vilain défaut (fr)
Hebrew: הסקרנות הרגה את החתול (he)
Hungarian: aki kíváncsi, hamar megöregszik (hu)
Irish: fios a mharaigh an cat
Macedonian: љубопитноста ја убила мачката ‎(ljubopitnosta ja ubila mačkata)

Polish: ciekawy kot do studni wpadł, ciekawość to pierwszy stopień do piekła (pl)
Portuguese: a curiosidade matou o gato
Russian: любопы́тной Ва́рваре на база́ре нос оторва́ли (ru) ‎(ljubopýtnoj Várvare na bazáre nos otorváli), мно́го бу́дешь знать — ско́ро соста́ришься ‎(mnógo búdešʹ znatʹ — skóro sostárišʹsja), ме́ньше зна́ешь — кре́пче спишь ‎(ménʹše znáješʹ — krépče spišʹ)
Serbo-Croatian: radoznalost je ubila mačku
Spanish: la curiosidad mató al gato (es)
Swedish: nyfiken i en strut (roughly similar idiomatic phrase)
Tagalog: ang sobra-sobrang pag-usisa ay delikado
Welsh: busnesa a laddodd y gath

See also

nine lives

References

Gregory Y. Titelman, Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings, 1996, ISBN 0-679-44554-4, p. 48.