Metailurus is a genus of false saber-toothed cat of the family Felidae, belonging to the tribe Metailurini, which occurred in Asia and Africa during the Miocene and Pliocene.Metailurus was named by Zdansky (1924). It was assigned to Felidae by Carroll (1988).Metailurus is known as a "false sabertooth" cat because, instead of true saberteeth, it has a cross between long, flat and blade-like saberteeth and the shorter cone-shaped teeth of modern-day felines.