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
disapproving
: slattern entry 1 sense 1
2
disapproving
: 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 HuxleySynonyms of drab
Examples 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
Ilana Gordon, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Dec. 2025
Gone, too, is the neon 1990s carpeting that spilled out from the drab lobby entrance with its unstaffed box office booth through the winding halls into the 12 theaters.
—Miami Herald, 19 Dec. 2025
Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 19 Dec. 2025
The 6x9' is just out of reach at $558, but feels worth the splurge to take your outdoor space from drab to designer.
—Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 26 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for drab
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Adjective
With the help of skilled designers and some of Trixie's famous friends (Zooey Deschanel, Nicole Byer, Leslie Jordan, and more), the Trixie Motel steadily goes from drab to fab one room at a time.
—Ilana Gordon, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Dec. 2025
Gone, too, is the neon 1990s carpeting that spilled out from the drab lobby entrance with its unstaffed box office booth through the winding halls into the 12 theaters.
—Miami Herald, 19 Dec. 2025
Noun
The emails, the birthday book, the address book—there's been a lot to keep track of, released in drips and drabs.
—Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 19 Dec. 2025
The 6x9' is just out of reach at $558, but feels worth the splurge to take your outdoor space from drab to designer.
—Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 26 Aug. 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 8 Jan. 2026.
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