tabi

American  

[tah-bee] / ˈtɑ bi /

noun

tabis plural

1. a covering for the foot, similar to a sock, having a separate pouchlike stall for the large toe, worn especially in Japan, often with zoris.

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Etymology

Origin of tabi

1890–95; < Japanese, perhaps < Middle Chinese, equivalent to Chinese dānpí single-skin

Example Sentences

There were latex socks, and the house’s signature tabi boots recreated as thigh-high Crayola-colored recycled rubber waders.

From New York Times • Oct. 5, 2021

At one point, only the upper echelons of Japanese society wore them, but eventually, a cotton sock known as a tabi became common among all classes.

From Washington Post • Dec. 12, 2019

Stupidest Splurge I have these Visvim tabi sneakers that were, like, $1,300.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 28, 2018

It had a shaped foot with a split toe, like a Japanese tabi sock.

From The New Yorker • Mar. 16, 2015

The tabi, the white digitated stocking, gives to a small light foot a mythological aspect—the white cleft grace of the foot of a fauness.'

From Concerning Lafcadio Hearn With a Bibliography by Laura Stedman by Gould, George M. (George Milbrey)