Meaning & use
corralling cats
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Meaning
phraseidiominformalfigurative
An extremely difficult or impossible task of organizing or controlling a group of people who refuse to cooperate.
Grammar: Used as a noun phrase, often after 'like' to make a comparison: It's like corralling cats.
Patterns
- like corralling cats
- it's like corralling cats
Getting all the kids to sit down for dinner is like corralling cats.
Managing that team is like corralling cats — everyone does their own thing.
Trying to organize the volunteers felt like corralling cats.
Common combinations
- like corralling cats
- Trying to get everyone to agree was like corralling cats.
- it's like corralling cats
- It's like corralling cats when you try to herd the toddlers.
- corralling cats for a meeting
- Organizing the department for a meeting is like corralling cats for a meeting.
Synonyms and how they differ
- herding cats
- A very common variant with the same meaning; 'herding' is slightly more frequent in American English.
- wrangling
- Focuses on the struggle to control people or animals, but doesn't imply the same level of impossibility.
Commonly confused: corralling cats or corralling?
corralling cats vs corralling
The -ing form of the verb 'corral' (to gather or confine), which is the base of this idiom.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'corralling cats' correctly?
Choose one answer.
The idiom is a fixed phrase used after 'like' to compare a task to something chaotic; it is not used as a verb with an object. The other options incorrectly use it as a verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “corralling cats”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.