slab

1 of 3

noun

1
: a thick plate or slice (as of stone, wood, or bread): such as
a
: the outside piece cut from a log in squaring it
b
: concrete pavement (as of a road)
specifically : a strip of concrete pavement laid as a single unjointed piece
c(1)
: a flat rectangular architectural element that is usually formed of a single piece or mass
a concrete foundation slab
(2)
: a rectangular building having little width with respect to its length and usually height
2
: something that resembles a slab (as in size, shape, or density)
backed up by a solid slab of reference materialThe Times Literary Supplement (London)
3
: a hard plastic holder for a collectible coin and an identifying insert
slablike adjective

slab

2 of 3

verb

slabbed; slabbing

transitive verb

1
a
: to remove an outer slab from
slab a log
b
: to divide or form into slabs
2
: to cover or support (something, such as a roadbed or roof) with slabs
3
: to put on thickly

slab

3 of 3

adjective

dialectal, chiefly England

Examples of slab in a Sentence

Noun a thick slab of homemade bread
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Frau Hermann entered stiffly carrying a tray with two steaming cups of tea and thick slabs of pastry on delicate white-china plates. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 23 Oct. 2024 Those ubiquitous mussel shells were gathered from the gutter and ground into low-cost bricks and paving slabs; a blight turned to homes. Charlie Campbell / Jakarta, TIME, 14 Oct. 2024
Verb
After snapping a few pictures in the fading light and then caping and slabbing off the sheep’s haunches and other edible meat, there was very little daylight left. Jim Carmichel, Outdoor Life, 25 July 2024 The wall slabs behind them do appear to be similar! Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 3 Apr. 2024
Adjective
Everything’s made in-house, from the 12 rotating ice cream flavors, including a peanut butter, bacon and banana flavor made with chopped bacon, to cupcakes, slab pies, muffins and coffee cakes. Cheryl V. Jackson, The Indianapolis Star, 14 July 2022 Somehow, the Grand Wagoneer's slab-sided body makes 22-inch wheels look tiny. Ezra Dyer, Car and Driver, 15 June 2022 See all Example Sentences for slab 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'slab.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English slabbe

Adjective

akin to Middle English slabben to wallow, obsolete Danish slab muck

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1703, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

1605, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of slab was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near slab

Cite this Entry

“Slab.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slab. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

slab

noun
ˈslab
: a thick flat piece or slice (as of stone, wood, or bread)

More from Merriam-Webster on slab

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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