A durable cord made from the dried intestines of sheep, goats, or horses (not cats), used for strings on musical instruments and tennis rackets.
From 'cat' and 'gut.' The origin of 'cat' in the name is disputed—possibly from 'kit' (an old word for fiddle), or from a mispronunciation of 'kitgut,' but definitely not from actual cats despite the name.
This is one of history's great misnomers—catgut contains zero actual cat intestines, and historians still argue about why it's called that, but musicians have used it for strings for over 500 years!
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