drabber; drabbest
2
a
: of a light olive brown color : of the color drab (see drab entry 2 sense 1a)
b
: of the dull brown color of drab (see drab entry 2 sense 2)
drably
adverb
drabness
noun
1
a
: a light olive brown
b
: a dull, lifeless, or faded appearance or quality
2
textiles
: any of various cloths of a dull brown or gray color
dressed in drabs
: a small amount
—usually used in the phrase dribs and drabs
receiving donations in dribs and drabs
plural drabs
1
: slattern
2
: a woman who engages in sex acts and especially sexual intercourse in exchange for pay : a woman who is a sex worker
drabbed; drabbing; drabs
: to associate with sex workers
… a waster, an idler; drinking and drabbing …—
Aldous Huxley
Aldous HuxleyExamples of drab in a Sentence
Adjective
He lives a drab life.
the new city hall promises to be another drab pile of masonry for the town
Noun (3)
in its time, this waterfront dive was decried as a den of iniquity, unfit even for the drunks and drabs who haunted it
Recent Examples on the Web
Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 12 May 2025
This was the weekend when Aston Villa closed in on the Champions League places, Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace shared as many red cards as goals, Arsenal slipped up again and Chelsea played out a drab 0-0 draw with Brentford.
—Nick Miller, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2025
Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 18 Mar. 2025
Early mammals were small, strictly nocturnal, and altogether less showy–verging on downright drab, as supported by a study published March 13 in the journal Science.
—Lauren Leffer, Popular Science, 13 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for drab
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Adjective
The previous owner had been a German sculptor and painter who used the drab walls as a backdrop for his work.
—Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 12 May 2025
This was the weekend when Aston Villa closed in on the Champions League places, Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace shared as many red cards as goals, Arsenal slipped up again and Chelsea played out a drab 0-0 draw with Brentford.
—Nick Miller, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2025
Noun
The Midi Dress Midi dresses are the opposite of drab at the moment.
—Robyn Mowatt, Essence, 18 Mar. 2025
Early mammals were small, strictly nocturnal, and altogether less showy–verging on downright drab, as supported by a study published March 13 in the journal Science.
—Lauren Leffer, Popular Science, 13 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for drab
Cite this Entry
“Drab.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drab. Accessed 20 May. 2025.
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