SQUAB

squab, squabby

(adjective) short and fat

squab

(noun) an unfledged pigeon

squab

(noun) a soft padded sofa

squab, dove

(noun) flesh of a pigeon suitable for roasting or braising; flesh of a dove (young squab) may be broiled

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Noun

squab (plural squabs)

(sometimes, attributive) A baby pigeon, dove, or chicken.

The meat of such a baby bird used as food.

A baby rook.

A thick cushion, especially a flat one covering the seat of a chair or sofa.

• Charles Dickens

A person of a short, fat figure.

Synonyms

• (baby pigeon): piper, squeaker, pigeon chick, young pigeon, baby dove

• (baby rook): rook chick, young rook

Verb

squab (third-person singular simple present squabs, present participle squabbing, simple past and past participle squabbed)

(obsolete) To fall plump; to strike at one dash, or with a heavy stroke.

(transitive) To furnish with squabs, or cushions.

(transitive) To stuff thickly and sew through, the stitches being concealed by buttons, etc.

Adjective

squab (comparative more squab, superlative most squab)

Fat; thick; plump; bulky.

• Betterton

Unfledged; unfeathered.

Clumsy.

Curt; abrupt.

Shy; coy.

Adverb

squab (not comparable)

(slang) With a heavy fall; plump.

• L'Estrange

Anagrams

• quabs

Source: Wiktionary


Squab, a. Etym: [Cf. dial. Sw. sqvabb a soft and fat body, sqvabba a fat woman, Icel. kvap jelly, jellylike things, and and E. quab.]

1. Fat; thick; plump; bulky. Nor the squab daughter nor the wife were nice. Betterton.

2. Unfledged; unfeathered; as, a squab pigeon. King.

Squab, n.

1. (Zoöl.)

Definition: A neatling of a pigeon or other similar bird, esp. when very fat and not fully fledged.

2. A person of a short, fat figure. Gorgonious sits abdominous and wan, Like a fat squab upon a Chinese fan. Cowper.

3. A thickly stuffed cushion; especially, one used for the seat of a sofa, couch, or chair; also, a sofa. Punching the squab of chairs and sofas. Dickens. On her large squab you find her spread. Pope.

Squab, adv. Etym: [Cf. dial. Sw. squapp, a word imitative of a splash, and E. squab fat, unfledged.]

Definition: With a heavy fall; plump. [Vulgar] The eagle took the tortoise up into the air, and dropped him down, squab, upon a rock. L'Estrange.

Squab, v. i.

Definition: To fall plump; to strike at one dash, or with a heavy stroke. [Obs.]

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

23 November 2024

THEORETICAL

(adjective) concerned primarily with theories or hypotheses rather than practical considerations; “theoretical science”


coffee icon

Coffee Trivia

According to WorldAtlas, Finland is the biggest coffee consumer in the entire world. The average Finn will consume 12 kg of coffee each year.

coffee icon