tabby

¹ American  

[tab-ee] / ˈtæb i /

noun

plural

tabbies

1. a cat with a striped or brindled coat.

2. a domestic cat, especially a female one.

3. a spinster.

4. a spiteful female gossip or tattler.

5. plain weave.

6. a watered silk fabric, or any other watered material, as moreen.

---

adjective

1. striped or brindled.

2. made of or resembling tabby.

verb (used with object)

tabbied, tabbying

1. to give a wavy or watered appearance to, as silk.

tabby ² American  

[tab-ee] / ˈtæb i /

noun

1. (in the southeastern United States) a building material composed of ground oyster shells, lime, and sand, mixed with salt water.

---

tabby ¹ British  

/ ˈtæbɪ /

adjective

1. (esp of cats) brindled with dark stripes or wavy markings on a lighter background

2. having a wavy or striped pattern, particularly in colours of grey and brown

---

noun

1. a tabby cat

2. any female domestic cat

3. informal a gossiping old woman

4. slang any girl or woman

tabby ² British  

/ ˈtæbɪ /

noun

1. a fabric with a watered pattern, esp silk or taffeta

---

Etymology

Origin of tabby¹

First recorded in 1630–40; back formation from French tabis (taken as plural), Middle French (a)tabis “silk cloth,” from Medieval Latin attābi, from Arabic ʿattābī, derivative of (al) ʿAttābīyah, quarter of Baghdad where the silk was first made, literally, “the quarter of (Prince) ʿAttāb”

Origin of tabby²

An Americanism dating back to 1765–75; of uncertain origin; perhaps from Gullah tabi, from a West African language

Example Sentences

Since then, the white and tabby cat, officially introduced on Downing Street's website as the "Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office", has reigned supreme from the country's most photographed doorstep.

From Barron's • Feb. 15, 2026

Across the pond, Larry, a stray tabby dubbed the Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office, lives at the British prime minister’s residence and regularly gets press coverage.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 2, 2026

When Alan gave his Persian tabby cat, Smokey, its regular flea treatment last year, he thought nothing could go wrong.

From BBC • Sep. 16, 2025

As we climbed the steps leading to the iconic seventeenth-century mosque, we glimpsed a tiny tabby tiptoeing through the gorgeous courtyard, which is surrounded by tall red sandstone gates.

From Salon • Oct. 14, 2024

I looked over toward the cage, and there on the other side of the window was a pathetic tabby face looking in.

From "Bunnicula" by Deborah Howe and James Howe