nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs

English

Etymology

A more elaborate form of nervous as a cat. The implication is that the cat is afraid of its long tail being caught underneath a rocker.

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

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Adjective

nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs

1. (simile) Extremely nervous.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:nervous