Let the Cat Out of the Bag
Meaning: To reveal a secret, usually by accident.
To "let the cat out of the bag" means to reveal a secret, usually by accident, before it's meant to be known. A popular story links it to old markets, where a dishonest seller might put a cat in a sack instead of a piglet. If the cat got out, the trick was revealed! It's a fun image, but no one knows for sure if that's where the phrase comes from; it has been used in English since the 1700s. Example: "Don't let the cat out of the bag about the surprise party."
How to use it
It’s used for surprises and secrets that weren’t meant to come out yet: a party, a pregnancy, a new job, a product launch. It’s informal and light, and it usually suggests a mistake rather than a betrayal. You can also ask “Who let the cat out of the bag?” to find out who told.
Examples
- I let the cat out of the bag about her surprise party. Oops.
- Don’t let the cat out of the bag. We’re announcing it on Monday.
- The new phone was supposed to be a secret, but a leaked photo let the cat out of the bag.
A common mistake
Keep the fixed words: let the cat out of the bag, not “let a cat out from the bag.” For a secret told on purpose, a word like “leak” or “reveal” fits better.
Where it comes from
The most common story is about market cheats who sold a cat in a bag in place of a piglet, but there’s no firm evidence for it. It’s often linked to the older phrase “buy a pig in a poke” (a poke is a bag). The idiom appears in print by the mid-1700s.
Say it out loud
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Source: Reader’s Digest