Illustration of tabby
- tabby 1a
plural tabbies
1
a
: a domestic cat with a striped and mottled coat
b
: a domestic cat
especially
: a female cat
2
a
: a plain-woven fabric
b
archaic
: a plain silk taffeta especially with moiré finish
1
: striped and mottled with darker color : brindled
a tabby cat
2
: of, relating to, or made of tabby
a tabby vest
: a cement made of lime, sand or gravel, and oyster shells and used chiefly along the coast of Georgia and South Carolina in the 17th and 18th centuries
Examples of tabby in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Caroline Petrow-Cohen, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Clementine Breed: Domestic shorthair/tabby Age: 5 years old Clementine is a love-bug in search of her forever home.
—Teryn Jones, Kansas City Star, 10 Apr. 2024
Her partner, Kenji, is a handsome, slightly shy tabby with gorgeous white markings.
—The Arizona Republic, 29 Mar. 2024
For example, score this personal-sized Magic Bullet blender for just $15 and this Squishmallow pink tabby cat pillow for only $5.
—Alex Nelson, Peoplemag, 24 Nov. 2023
Upon their arrival at White Blossom Circle, the officer discovered a large deceased male orange tabby cat that had suffered trauma to his head.
—Daniel McFadin, arkansasonline.com, 27 Mar. 2024
The book follows Willow, the Biden family’s tabby cat, and her adjustment to living in the White House after she was adopted from a farm in Pennsylvania.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, Peoplemag, 26 Mar. 2024
In December of last year, the adorable orange tabby and his siblings were brought to the Arizona Humane Society underweight with severe upper respiratory infections.
—The Arizona Republic, 16 Feb. 2024
The three-year-old domestic shorthair tabby was found to have a severe degloving injury of his front paw that had become infected.
—The Arizona Republic, 8 Mar. 2024
Linda McIntosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Dec. 2023
With gentle winds from the south at 5 to 10 mph, so much for the month coming in like a lion — more like a tabby cat.
—David Streit, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024
It’s written on a cardboard box that often contains the store’s lounging tabby cat, an internet star who has a varied wardrobe, but often wears a striped T-shirt.
—Cathy Free, Washington Post, 10 Sep. 2023
The daughter of a piano teacher and musician, Jo taught art to immigrant children in a public school on New York’s Lower East Side, lived with her tabby cat, Arthur, and dreamed of making a living as a professional artist.
—Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 3 Aug. 2023
The couple had been together for about 11 years and moved to Seattle several years ago with their tabby cat, Otis, Bailey said.
—oregonlive, 23 June 2023
Skabenga, a tabby cat lovingly known as a feline with —at least — nine lives, calls one of South Africa’s most iconic properties, The Oyster Box, home.
—Sandra MacGregor, Forbes, 2 Apr. 2023
The pair are both calicos, although Dusty has more of a tabby look.
—The Republic, The Arizona Republic, 10 Mar. 2023
Today's study also charts the rise of the single mutation that gives us today's rather common tabby coat pattern, and in doing so sheds additional light on cat domestication overall.
—Gemma Tarlach, Discover Magazine, 19 June 2017
Noun
Inside were the decaying remains of Balog’s beloved pet, a short-hair American tabby cat named Stewie.
—Caroline Petrow-Cohen, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2024
Clementine Breed: Domestic shorthair/tabby Age: 5 years old Clementine is a love-bug in search of her forever home.
—Teryn Jones, Kansas City Star, 10 Apr. 2024
Her partner, Kenji, is a handsome, slightly shy tabby with gorgeous white markings.
—The Arizona Republic, 29 Mar. 2024
For example, score this personal-sized Magic Bullet blender for just $15 and this Squishmallow pink tabby cat pillow for only $5.
—Alex Nelson, Peoplemag, 24 Nov. 2023
Upon their arrival at White Blossom Circle, the officer discovered a large deceased male orange tabby cat that had suffered trauma to his head.
—Daniel McFadin, arkansasonline.com, 27 Mar. 2024
The book follows Willow, the Biden family’s tabby cat, and her adjustment to living in the White House after she was adopted from a farm in Pennsylvania.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, Peoplemag, 26 Mar. 2024
In December of last year, the adorable orange tabby and his siblings were brought to the Arizona Humane Society underweight with severe upper respiratory infections.
—The Arizona Republic, 16 Feb. 2024
The three-year-old domestic shorthair tabby was found to have a severe degloving injury of his front paw that had become infected.
—The Arizona Republic, 8 Mar. 2024
Adjective
Animal: Mack, a 7-year-old, 10-pound male domestic shorthair cat with a gray-and-white tabby coat.
—Linda McIntosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Dec. 2023
With gentle winds from the south at 5 to 10 mph, so much for the month coming in like a lion — more like a tabby cat.
—David Streit, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024
It’s written on a cardboard box that often contains the store’s lounging tabby cat, an internet star who has a varied wardrobe, but often wears a striped T-shirt.
—Cathy Free, Washington Post, 10 Sep. 2023
The daughter of a piano teacher and musician, Jo taught art to immigrant children in a public school on New York’s Lower East Side, lived with her tabby cat, Arthur, and dreamed of making a living as a professional artist.
—Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 3 Aug. 2023
The couple had been together for about 11 years and moved to Seattle several years ago with their tabby cat, Otis, Bailey said.
—oregonlive, 23 June 2023
Skabenga, a tabby cat lovingly known as a feline with —at least — nine lives, calls one of South Africa’s most iconic properties, The Oyster Box, home.
—Sandra MacGregor, Forbes, 2 Apr. 2023
The pair are both calicos, although Dusty has more of a tabby look.
—The Republic, The Arizona Republic, 10 Mar. 2023
Today's study also charts the rise of the single mutation that gives us today's rather common tabby coat pattern, and in doing so sheds additional light on cat domestication overall.
—Gemma Tarlach, Discover Magazine, 19 June 2017
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tabby.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to tabby
Dictionary Entries Near tabby
Cite this Entry
“Tabby.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tabby. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share