Other forms: catwalks
A catwalk is the long raised stage models walk along. On the catwalk, a catwalk show, catwalk trends.
It is narrow so that the audience sits close on both sides and the clothes are seen moving, which is the entire point of a show. The older sense is any narrow walkway above the ground — on a bridge, a ship or above a theatre stage.
1nouncatwalkThe long raised stage models walk along.
“The models walked down the catwalk in the designer's new spring collection.”
catwalk is a walkway.
Cat plus walk, for the narrow footing a cat would manage. The fashion sense came later than the industrial one.
From cat + walk.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA