tab-bed

tab

1 [tab] noun, verb, tabbed, tab·bing.
noun
1.
a small flap, strap, loop, or similar appendage, as on a garment, used for pulling, hanging, or decoration.
2.
a tag or label.
3.
a small projection from a card, paper, or folder, used as an aid in filing.
4.
Informal. a bill, as for a meal in a restaurant; check.
5.
a small piece attached or intended to be attached, as to an automobile license plate.
6.
a small flap or tongue of material used to seal or close the opening of a container.
7.
Also called tabulator. a stop on a typewriter, actuated by a key, that moves the carriage, typing element, etc., a predetermined number of spaces, used for typing material in columns, for fixed indentations, etc.
8.
a programmed command on a computer, actuated by a key, that moves the cursor or printhead a predetermined number of spaces, used for keying material in columns, for fixed indentations, etc.
9.
Theater.
a.
a small, often narrow, drop curtain, for masking part of the stage.
b.
tableau curtain.
10.
Aeronautics. a small airfoil hinged to the rear portion of a control surface, as to an elevator, aileron, or rudder. Compare trim tab.
verb (used with object)
11.
to furnish or ornament with a tab or tabs.
12.
to name or designate.
00:10
Tab-bed is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
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verb (used without object)
13.
Also, tabulate. to operate the tab function on a typewriter or computer.
Idioms
14.
keep tabs/tab on, Informal. to keep an account of; check on; observe: The police kept tabs on the suspect's activities.
Origin:
1600–10; (in defs 1–3, 5) < ?; (in defs 7 and 8) short for tabulator; (in def 9) short for tableau; (in defs 4 and 14) partly from shortening of table, partly in sense of def. 1

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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
tab1 (tæb) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  a small flap of material, esp one on a garment for decoration or for fastening to a button
2.  any similar flap, such as a piece of paper attached to a file for identification
3.  See also trim tab a small auxiliary aerofoil on the trailing edge of a rudder, aileron, or elevator, etc, to assist in the control of the aircraft in flight
4.  (Brit) military the insignia on the collar of a staff officer
5.  chiefly (US), (Canadian) a bill, esp one for a meal or drinks
6.  dialect (Scot), (Northern English) a cigarette
7.  informal keep tabs on to keep a watchful eye on
 
—vb , tabs, tabbing, tabbed
8.  (tr) to supply (files, clothing, etc) with a tab or tabs
 
[C17: of unknown origin]

tab2 (tæb) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  tabulator short for tablet
2.  slang a portion of a drug, esp LSD or ecstasy

TAB
 
—abbreviation for
1.  typhoid-paratyphoid A and B (vaccine)
2.  (Austral), (NZ) Totalizator Agency Board

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

tab
"small flap," c.1600, possibly a dialectal word, of uncertain origin. Often interchangeable with tag (1). The verb meaning "to designate, label" is 1924, perhaps an alteration of tag (1).

tab
"account, bill, check," 1889, Amer.Eng. colloquial, probably a shortened form of tabulation or of tablet in the sense of "a sheet for writing on." Fig. phrase to keep a tab on is recorded from 1890.

tab
1961, shortened form of tablet (esp. one of sugar containing LSD). As an abbreviation of tabloid (newspaper) it is 1990s slang. As a short form of tabulator key of a typewriter (later computer) it is recorded from 1916.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary

tab definition


  1. n.
    a bill (for something). (From tabulation. See also chit.) : Marlowe paid the tab and left quietly.
  2. n.
    a tablet (of medicine). : Take a couple of aspirin tabs and call me in the morning.
  3. tv.
    to identify someone. : I couldn't quite tab her, but when she started talking I knew right away who she was.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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American Heritage
Abbreviations & Acronyms
tab
tablet
TAB
timing and acquisition bit
The American Heritage® Abbreviations Dictionary, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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