Cat Communication: What These 4 Common Cat Sounds Mean

Despite being rather different from the way we communicate, a cat’s body language and vocalisation can be no less informative. Our feline friends use those two approaches to express their feelings and intentions, but without proper understanding, such information can easily fly past our heads.

Understanding your pet is essential if you’re striving to become your pet’s best friend and also its responsible owner. It’ll give you a clue as to how your cat is faring in terms of physically, mentally and emotionally and from there, you’d be able to figure out our next step.


Interestingly enough, the meow of a cat is almost exclusively used to communicate with solely humans and not other animals. Similar to the human voice, a cat’s meow has various intonations and each one of them means something different.

A long, thin and high-pitched meow often signals a desire for something – whether that’d be attention, food and the like. In the eyes of your furkid, you are their source of food, comfort and protection.

Meanwhile, if your cat produced a short and high-pitched meow, it’s just giving you a greeting because it misses you so! In fact, the more meows they make, the more excited they are to see you.

Longer, low pitched meows are reserved whenever they are feeling displeased or unhappy over something we did (shooing them away from their favourite corner) or didn’t do (not playing with them).


Purring is a deep buzzing sound that’s produced when a cat’s laryngeal muscles contract. This sound is often perceived as one of the happy cat sounds to communicate that your furkid is happy and satisfied. Kittens, in particular, learn how to purr to bond with their cat mom and reassure the latter that they feel fine. You’d often hear them purr whenever they drink their mother’s milk.

However, do take note that there are special instances for everything. Whilst the general consensus of the meaning behind purring is positive, it may also hint at a cat’s fatigue. If you’ve been playing with your cat for a while and it starts to purr, perhaps it’s time to leave them alone to let it rest.


A cat’s yowl is typically a long and drawn out low-pitched moan that can also get rather loud at times. There are a few different reasons as to why cats yowl in the first place. One being discomfort and it expresses this with a series of low-pitched moans. If your cat doesn’t typically make this sound, it may hint at an issue you’d need to diagnose and fix at a cat vet facility.

As with any other animals, cats are also territorial. Should somebody or another animal invade a space they’ve marked as theirs, cats would start yowling to show their displeasure. Cats that were brought home from facilities with pet adoption services may also howl as they try to get used to a new environment.

Another reason as to why your cat is yowling is due to sheer boredom. Thus, give your furry beauty enough attention throughout the day and they’d be satiated.


One of the angry cat noises, cat hissing is often accompanied with defensive body language: an arched back, puffed up fur and the baring of the teeth. Most cats that are taught to socialise rarely hiss or growl unless provoked.

A cat will only hiss when they are in fear or anger. When facing a real or perceived threat, a cat will hiss in order to warn the other party and scare it away. Additionally, in the instance wherein their territory is invaded or another claims their property, cats are more than ready to give a disapproving hiss.

Believe it or not, you’d be able to communicate with your feline friend effortless once you’ve spent enough time with them. The more you observe their quirks and behaviour, the better you’d be at decoding and understanding their moods and wants.

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