tabby

¹ American  

[tab-ee] / ˈtæb i /

noun

tabbies plural

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.

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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.

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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

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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

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• tabbies
  plural

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

Explanation

A tabby is a house cat with stripes on its fur, often in browns and grays. There are different breeds of tabby cats. Occasionally one will dangle off a branch under a caption that says, “Hang in there.” Tabby can refer to domesticated cats, but it's also an adjective describing the stripy pattern itself. Tabby cats, with their swirling tabby patches, might also have a marking in the shape of an M on their foreheads. Maine coon cats are one example of a tabby breed. In the 1600's, tabby was a kind of striped silk fabric, and the word comes from the Arabic 'Attabiy, a Baghdad neighborhood where the cloth was traditionally produced.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tabby tabbies

In New York, apparently it’s now financially impossible to own a tabby without state assistance.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026

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

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

Genovese allegedly stole a 2 1/2-year-old orange tabby cat named Lancelot from a resident in Ventura, officials said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2025

Not with them but not far behind came the tabby cat.

From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman

I foster cats and I’m actually fostering two sister tabbies right now — Lucy and Ethel — and the CatCafe Lounge has taken probably 12 of the cats I’ve fostered and gotten them adopted.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2024

She contends that cats—from tabbies to tigers—are quintessential products of evolution.

From Scientific American ● Oct. 4, 2023

I have plans to make a music room, a library, and a cat heaven for my three tabbies, but I updated the studio first with plans to rent it out.

From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2022

For example, if he hears the expression “It’s raining cats and dogs,” he expects tabbies and terriers to fall from the skies.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 21, 2021

It attached itself to no person, as was the case with some of the others, but curiously took a particular fancy to one of my short-haired, silver-gray tabbies; the two appeared always together.

From Our Cats and All About Them Their Varieties, Habits, and Management; and for Show, the Standard of Excellence and Beauty; Described and Pictured by Weir, Harrison