What does It Mean to live a ‘Cat and Dog Life’?

A cat and dog life means —

• unhappy married life;
• a stressful life full of arguments and squabbles between husband and wife.

Since ancient times, it is a belief that a cat and a dog are two animals that cannot live in harmony with each other. Their relationship is filled with hissing and growling at each other.

Thus, a cat-and-dog life is a metaphor for a married life filled with arguments and disputes.

Sometimes this phrase is used in its hyphenated form. For example —

“I wish I had divorced her long ago before we started leading this cat-and-dog life.”

The example is self-explanatory guys.

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Hi, I am Gauri Shanker, a Vocab teacher and enthusiast. I teach vocabulary in a fun and engaging way. You can check out my courses here.