tabby

1 of 3

noun (1)

tab·​by ˈta-bē 

plural tabbies

1

[tabby entry 2]

a

: a domestic cat with a striped and mottled coat

b

: a domestic cat

especially : a female cat

2

a

: a plain-woven fabric

b

archaic : a plain silk taffeta especially with moiré finish

Illustration of tabby

• tabby 1a

tabby

2 of 3

adjective

1

: striped and mottled with darker color : brindled

a tabby cat

2

: of, relating to, or made of tabby

a tabby vest

tabby

3 of 3

noun (2)

: a cement made of lime, sand or gravel, and oyster shells and used chiefly along the coast of Georgia and South Carolina in the 17th and 18th centuries

Examples of tabby in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

When Julia arrived with a can of cat food, the first kitten had already been adopted, but the second—a frightened and feisty tabby—was still there. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 12 Dec. 2024

The Tony Award winner took to Facebook to express his concern for Bobo, an orange tabby cat, that unfortunately escaped during the evacuation. —Hannah Parry, Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2024

Adjective

His tabby brother sits almost on top of him protectively, staring up at the camera, before lying beside him and reaching an arm across the recovering black kitten. —Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 3 Dec. 2024

The tabby mixed cat is feeling fishy and pondering her next aquatic catch as a scary shark this Halloween. —Gabriele Regalbuto, Fox News, 30 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

French tabis, from Middle French atabis, from Medieval Latin attabi, from Arabic ʽattābī, from Al-ʽAttābīya, quarter in Baghdad

Noun (2)

Gullah tabi, ultimately from Spanish tapia adobe wall

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1638, in the meaning defined at sense 2b

Adjective

1640, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (2)

1775, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

tabby

noun

tab·​by

ˈtab-ē

plural tabbies

1

: a domestic cat with a striped and spotted coat

2

: a female cat

Etymology

Noun

from French tabis "a silk fabric with a lustrous wavy finish," from Latin attabi (same meaning), from Arabic 'attābī (same meaning), from Al-'Attābīya, name of a part of Baghdad where the cloth was made

Word Origin

A silk cloth with a striped or wavy pattern was once made in a section of the ancient city of Baghdad in what is now Iraq. The Arabic name for the cloth was 'attābī, from Al-'Attābīya, the name of the part of the city where it was made. Through Latin, the French borrowed this word for the cloth, calling it tabis. This word in turn became tabby in English. People saw a resemblance between the striped or wavy pattern of the silk and cats that had striped or spotted markings on their fur. Thus these cats came to be called tabby cats after the cloth.