drab

¹ American  

[drab] / dræb /

adjective

drabber, drabbest

1. dull; cheerless; lacking in spirit, brightness, etc.

2. having the color drab.

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noun

1. dull gray; dull brownish or yellowish gray.

2. any of several fabrics of this color, especially of thick wool or cotton.

drab ² American  

[drab] / dræb /

noun

Archaic.

1. a dirty, untidy woman; slattern.

2. a prostitute.

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verb (used without object)

drabbed, drabbing

1. to associate with drabs.

drab ¹ British  

/ dræb /

adjective

1. dull; dingy; shabby

2. cheerless; dreary

   a drab evening

3. of the colour drab

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noun

1. a light olive-brown colour

2. a fabric of a dull grey or brown colour

drab ² British  

/ dræb /

noun

1. a slatternly woman

2. a whore

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verb

1. (intr) to consort with prostitutes

drab Idioms  

1. see dribs and drabs.

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Other Word Forms

• drably adverb
• drabness noun

Etymology

Origin of drab¹

1535–45; < Middle French drap < Late Latin drappus piece of cloth

Origin of drab²

First recorded in 1505–15; perhaps akin to Dutch drab “dregs, lees,” obsolete Dutch drablen “to run or tramp about”; drabble, draff

Explanation

Dull, dreary, dingy, depressing: These adjectives capture the sense of drab, whether the word is used to describe a muted color, a miserable mood, or an oppressively boring existence. Have you ever heard of the color olive drab? It's the color the military clothes its soldiers in and is the original meaning of the word drab. A little over 100 years ago, people began using drab in the metaphorical sense to mean "dull" and "lacking brightness." If a website or an advertisement is drab, the page is boring and unattractive. If it is cold and rainy for a week, you'll get awfully tired of those drab days, and a great teacher can make even the drabbest book come to life.

Example Sentences

One manufacturer’s idea of khaki or olive drab, for example, might not match another’s—a serious problem when thousands of yards of uniform fabric had to be dyed the same shade.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

He recalled a drab maze of run-down buildings inside a vast wooded compound whose tedious daily rhythms moved to the whims of wardens that rewarded the cooperative and punished the defiant.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026

It is, at times, horrifying and anxiety-inducing; at others, it’s frustratingly drab.

From Salon • Feb. 8, 2026

Set in 1970s San Francisco, this turn-of-the-thumbscrews-tense novel upends noir conventions, placing a drab 19-year-old telephone operator, Celia Dent, center stage.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 2026

One drab woman was weeping silently into a dirty dish towel.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller

Related Words

• bleak
• desolate
• dingy
• dismal
• dreary
• gray
• lackluster
• muddy
• run down
• shabby
• somber