slab

¹

[ slab ]

noun

1. a broad, flat, somewhat thick piece of stone, wood, or other solid material.
2. a thick slice of anything:

   a slab of bread.

3. a semifinished piece of iron or steel so rolled that its breadth is at least twice its thickness.
4. a rough outside piece cut from a log, as when sawing one into boards.
5. Baseball Slang. rubber ¹( def 14 ).
6. Building Trades. a section of concrete pavement or a concrete floor placed directly on the ground or on a base of gravel.

verb (used with object)

, slabbed, slab·bing.

1. to make into a slab or slabs.
2. to cover or lay with slabs.
3. to cut the slabs or outside pieces from (a log).
4. to put on in slabs; cover thickly.

slab

²

[ slab ]

adjective

, Scot. and North England.

1. thick; viscous.

slab

/ slæb /

noun

1. a broad flat thick piece of wood, stone, or other material
2. a thick slice of cake, etc
3. any of the outside parts of a log that are sawn off while the log is being made into planks
4. mountaineering a flat sheet of rock lying at an angle of between 30° and 60° from the horizontal
5. a printer's ink table
6. modifier made or constructed of coarse wooden planks

   a slab hut

7. informal.
   an operating or mortuary table
8. informal.
   a package containing 24 cans of beer

verb

1. to cut or make into a slab or slabs
2. to cover or lay with slabs
3. to saw slabs from (a log)

Word History and Origins

Origin of slab¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English noun slab(be), sclabbe; further origin unknown

Origin of slab²

First recorded in 1595–1605; apparently from Scandinavian; compare Swedish, Norwegian slabb “mire,” Danish slab “mud,” Icelandic slabba “to wade in mud”

Word History and Origins

Origin of slab¹

C13: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

Left, sliced log slabs make decorative plates and platters.

From Los Angeles Times

Mr Gray, from Shipley, who started working as a stone dresser in 1997, used power and hand tools to make paving slabs from reclaimed quarried stone.

From BBC

“We were born and raised here,” Hussein says, gesturing around at slabs of concrete and twisted metal.

From BBC

Mohammed Sukayneh picked his way through slabs of rubble and twisted metal, clutching a few plastic bags - all he could recover from his home of 45 years.

From BBC

Engineered stone manufacturers say their slabs can be cut safely with proper precautions and that shoddily run workplaces — not their products — are to blame.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• hunk
• ingot
• lump
• piece
• plate
• rod
• slice
• stone
• strip
• wedge