tabby

¹

[ tab-ee ]

noun

, plural tab·bies.

1. a cat with a striped or brindled coat.
2. a domestic cat, especially a female one.
3. a spinster.
4. a spiteful female gossip or tattler.
5. plain weave.
6. a watered silk fabric, or any other watered material, as moreen.

adjective

1. striped or brindled.
2. made of or resembling tabby.

verb (used with object)

, tab·bied, tab·by·ing.

1. to give a wavy or watered appearance to, as silk.

tabby

²

[ tab-ee ]

noun

1. (in the southeastern United States) a building material composed of ground oyster shells, lime, and sand, mixed with salt water.

tabby

¹

/ ˈtæbɪ /

adjective

1. (esp of cats) brindled with dark stripes or wavy markings on a lighter background
2. having a wavy or striped pattern, particularly in colours of grey and brown

noun

1. a tabby cat
2. any female domestic cat
3. informal.
   a gossiping old woman
4. slang.
   any girl or woman

tabby

²

/ ˈtæbɪ /

noun

1. a fabric with a watered pattern, esp silk or taffeta

Word History and Origins

Origin of tabby¹

First recorded in 1630–40; back formation from French tabis (taken as plural), Middle French (a)tabis “silk cloth,” from Medieval Latin attābi, from Arabic ʿattābī, derivative of (al) ʿAttābīyah, quarter of Baghdad where the silk was first made, literally, “the quarter of (Prince) ʿAttāb”

Origin of tabby²

An Americanism dating back to 1765–75; of uncertain origin; perhaps from Gullah tabi, from a West African language

Word History and Origins

Origin of tabby¹

C17: from Tabby , pet form of the girl's name Tabitha , probably influenced by tabby ¹

Origin of tabby²

C17: from Old French tabis silk cloth, from Arabic al-`attabiya, literally: the quarter of (Prince) `Attab, the part of Baghdad where the fabric was first made

Example Sentences

An image might be labeled “tabby cat” or “tiger cat,” for example, to “train” an artificial neural network to correctly distinguish a tabby from a tiger.

From Quanta Magazine

Geneticists recently discovered a gene in domesticated cats that triggers changes in fetal cat development, resulting in those trademark feline tabby stripes.

From Popular-Science

But in the book, Father Carmine just has one unhealthy tabby cat.

From The Daily Beast

Some old tabby of a chaperon saw me there and came and told my grandmother.

From Project Gutenberg

Poor Tabby became so lame that she was at length obliged to leave us.

From Project Gutenberg

All the cats kept at this establishment, and there are several, are of the red tabby colour, and therefore most likely all males.

From Project Gutenberg

The colour, however, that I now refer to is often called the silver tabby, for want of a better name.

From Project Gutenberg

Next kin to it is the very light-gray tabby, with almost the same hue, if not quite so light-gray markings.

From Project Gutenberg