# Can cats understand words?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-cats-understand-words/340754>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 20, 2006, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-cats-understand-words/340754 "2006-01-20T00:46:36Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\
**Post date:** [January 22, 2006, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-cats-understand-words/340754/41 "2006-01-22T01:35:16Z")

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**Polycarp** , what a relief to see your post! My kitties were orphans, and I bottle fed them , so there’s a close bond. They all respond to their individual names, not to the other’s names. They also definitely know the word NO.

Last week, the big male kitty, 3 years old, was wanting to go out in the middle of the night. I told him NO. He got mighty pissed off, scratching at the door, and then let out a mighty “OWWWWWWWWTTTT”, with a T sound at the end. Kept doing it, too. I then let him out, wondering if I was imagining it, because I’ve had cats all my life, and had never had a cat vocalize like that.

One variable is that, since I raised/nursed these cats from teenies, they really are bonded to me, different than other cats I’ve had. They followed me more closely as kittens, and there was a learning bond when tiny. I would vocalize "Ouuuuuttt?’ , in an extended cat sounding sense when opening the door to let them out.

Never before last week did I hear the fruits of that. It creeped me out a good bit, he sounded so human in vocal. Next time, I’m going to have to tape it. Freaky kitty.

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