tab
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tab¹
- /tæb/
- [tʰæb̥]
Rhymes with -æb
Where it comes from
First attested 1607, of uncertain origin.
noun tabs
-
A small flap or strip of material attached to or inserted into something, for holding, manipulation, identification, opening etc.
insert tab A into slot B
Opposite: slot
- An ear.
- A navigational widget, resembling a physical tab, for switching between documents or sets of controls.
- The page or form (for example, on a web browser or file manager) associated with such a navigational widget. How many tabs are open on your browser right now?
- A fast march or run with full kit.
verb tabs · tabbing · tabbed
- To affix with tabs; to label.
tab²
- /tæb/
- [tʰæb̥]
Rhymes with -æb
Where it comes from
Apocopation (shortening) of (variously) tabulate, tabulator, or tabulation.
noun tabs
- A restaurant bill. to pick up the tab
- Credit account, e.g., in a shop or bar; slate. to start a tab
- The cost or bill for anything. Moreover, at a tab of $9 million, the system's price is about $1 million less than a conventional heating-cooling plant […]
- A space character that extends to the next aligned column, traditionally used for tabulation. No no no no I don't, it's not hate, hate is a strong word, truth be told I do have a slight preference for tabs but that's only because I'm anal and because I prefer precision.
verb tabs · tabbing · tabbed
- To use the Tab key on a computer to advance the cursor or move the input focus, or on a typewriter to advance the carriage. You can prevent a control from getting the focus when the user is tabbing between controls by settings its IsTabStop property to False.
tab³
- /tæb/
- [tʰæb̥]
Rhymes with -æb
Where it comes from
Likely to have been formed by clipping the Geordie pronunciation of the word tobacco or alternatively from the brand name Ogden's Tabs.
noun tabs
- A cigarette. Lend us a tab!
tab⁴
- /tæb/
- [tʰæb̥]
Rhymes with -æb
Where it comes from
Clipping of tablature.
noun tabs
- A form of musical notation indicating fingering rather than the pitch of notes, commonly used for stringed instruments.
tab⁵
- /tæb/
- [tʰæb̥]
Rhymes with -æb
Where it comes from
Clipping of Cantab, from Cantabrigian, from Latin Cantabrigia (“Cambridge”).
noun tabs · Tab
- A student of Cambridge University. You should have been there---it was a good race. Just to clarify matters for the hard of understanding, the tabs led for about 1500m before turning to shrapnel, and Oxford eventually won by 3/4 length.
tab⁶
- /tæb/
- [tʰæb̥]
Rhymes with -æb
Where it comes from
Clipping of tabloid.
noun tabs
- A tabloid newspaper. By 1926 the tabloid mania was at full tilt, and the tabs in New York went at each other with hammer and tong.
tab⁷
- /tæb/
- [tʰæb̥]
Rhymes with -æb
Where it comes from
Clipping of tablet.
noun tabs
- A tablet, especially one containing illicit drugs. Tonight the kids will go out and party down in a more righteous mode. Alcohol and not a few tabs of X will be ingested. Club music will throb through big speakers.
tab⁸
- /tæb/
- [tʰæb̥]
Rhymes with -æb
noun tabs
- A tableau curtain.
Tab⁹
Where it comes from
From tab.
noun Tabs
- A key on a computer keyboard that typically inserts a tab or moves the input focus.
Tab10
noun Tabs
- Alternative letter-case form of tab (“student at Cambridge”).
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: chit, check, sheet, bevel, flange, bill, cotter, table, jack, slot, sticker, panel, extrusion, rim, tile, spigot
Translations
Every language
noun navigational widget in a GUI
| Español | pestaña |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 탭 taep |
| 日本語 | タブ tabu |
| 中文 | 標籤 /标签 biāoqiān, 分頁 /分页 fēnyè |
| Português | guia, aba, separador |
| Français | onglet |
| Deutsch | Registerkarte, Reiter, Tab |
| Italiano | scheda |
| Русский | вкла́дка vkládka, таб tab |
| العربية | عَلَامَة تَبْوِيب |
| עברית | לשונית |
noun small flap or strip of material attached to something
| Español | lengüeta |
|---|---|
| Português | lingueta |
| Français | onglet, languette |
| Deutsch | Reiter, Karteikartenreiter |
| Italiano | linguetta |
| Русский | пете́лька petélʹka, у́шко úško |
verb restaurant bill
| Español | cuenta |
|---|---|
| Français | note, addition, douloureuse |
verb credit in a shop or bar
| Français | ardoise |
|---|
verb short for tabulator
| 日本語 | タブ tabu |
|---|---|
| Français | onglet |
| Ελληνικά | στηλοθέτης stilothétis |
| Русский | табуля́тор tabuljátor, таб tab |
verb a space character that extends to the next column
| 한국어 | 탭 taep |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | タブ tabu |
| 中文 | 製表符 /制表符 zhìbiǎofú |
| Português | tabulação |
| Français | tabulation |
| Русский | табуля́ция tabuljácija, таб tab |
Talk about this word "tab." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/tab. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. tab. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/tab "tab." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/tab.Cite this
@misc{tab_2026,
title = {tab},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/tab},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
