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definitions

cab

1
[kab]
||
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR cab ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a taxicab.
any of various horse-drawn vehicles, as a hansom or brougham, especially one for public hire.
the covered or enclosed part of a locomotive, truck, crane, etc., where the operator sits.
the glass-enclosed area of an airport control tower in which the controllers are stationed.

verb (used without object), cabbed, cab·bing.

to ride in a taxicab or horse-drawn cab: They cabbed to the theater.

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RELATED WORDS

carriage, taxi, taxicab, hack, jitney, hackney

Origin of cab

1
First recorded in 1640–50; short for cabriolet

Synonyms for cab

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR cab ON THESAURUS.COM
1, 2. hack, hackney, jitney.

cab

2

or kab

[kab]

noun

an ancient Hebrew measure equal to about two quarts.

Origin of cab

2
First recorded in 1525–35, cab is from the Hebrew word qabh

cab

3
[kab]

noun Chiefly British.

cabbage2(def 1b).

CAB

or C.A.B.

Civil Aeronautics Board.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for cab

Contemporary Examples of cab

Historical Examples of cab

  • He took a cab and was driven to the local branch of his favourite temple of chance.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • He called a cab for the old man, and saw him started safely off up-town.

    The Spenders

    Harry Leon Wilson

  • Her eyes gleamed in the shadow of the cab straight ahead, immovable.

    The Secret Agent

    Joseph Conrad

  • The cab rattled, jingled, jolted; in fact, the last was quite extraordinary.

    The Secret Agent

    Joseph Conrad

  • He glanced again at the cab and groaned: "O Lord, I just dassent!"

    The Black Bag

    Louis Joseph Vance

British Dictionary definitions for cab

cab

1

noun

  1. a taxi
  2. (as modifier)a cab rank
the enclosed compartment of a lorry, locomotive, crane, etc, from which it is driven or operated
(formerly) a light horse-drawn vehicle used for public hire
first cab off the rank Australian informal the first person, etc, to do or take advantage of something

Word Origin for cab

C19: shortened from cabriolet

cab

2

kab

noun

an ancient Hebrew measure equal to about 2.3 litres (4 pints)

Word Origin for cab

C16: from Hebrew qabh container, something hollowed out

CAB

abbreviation for

(in Britain) Citizens' Advice Bureau
(in the US) Civil Aeronautics Board
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for cab
n.

1826, "light, horse-drawn carriage," shortening of cabriolet (1763), from French cabriolet (18c.), diminutive of cabrioler "leap, caper" (16c./17c.), from Italian capriolare "jump in the air," from capriola, properly "the leap of a kid," from Latin capreolus "wild goat, roebuck," from PIE *kap-ro- "he-goat, buck" (cf. Old Irish gabor, Welsh gafr, Old English hæfr, Old Norse hafr "he-goat"). The carriages had springy suspensions.

Extended to hansoms and other types of carriages, then extended to similar-looking parts of locomotives (1851). Applied especially to public horse carriages, then to automobiles-for-hire (1899) when these began to replace them.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper