tab

• IPA^(key): /tæb/, [tʰæb̥]
• Rhymes: -æb

First attested 1607, of uncertain origin.

tab (plural tabs)

1. A small flap or strip of material attached to something, for holding, manipulation, identification, etc.
   • 1993, Irvine Welsh: Trainspotting, p 333:

     He pulls off his belt, cursing as the studs catch in the tabs of his jeans.

2. (slang) An ear.
3. (by extension, graphical user interface) A navigational widget, resembling a physical tab, for switching between documents or sets of controls.
4. (graphical user interface) The page or form associated with such a navigational widget.

   How many tabs are open in your Web browser?

5. (informal) A tablet, especially one containing illicit drugs.
   • 2008, Stephen King, Graduation Weekend

     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.

6. (British Army, military slang) A fast march or run with full kit.

tab (third-person singular simple present tabs, present participle tabbing, simple past and past participle tabbed)

1. To affix with tabs; to label.

• keep tabs on
• tabbed

Apocopation (shortening) of (variously) tabulate, tabulator, or tabulation.

tab (plural tabs)

1. (informal, chiefly Canada, US) A restaurant bill.
2. (informal, chiefly Canada, US) Credit account, e.g., in a shop or bar; slate

   Put this round on my tab, will you, barman.

3. (computing) A space character that extends to the next aligned column, traditionally used for tabulation.

tab (third-person singular simple present tabs, present participle tabbing, simple past and past participle tabbed)

1. (computing) 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.
   • 2010, Chris Anderson, Pro Business Applications with Silverlight 4 (page 210)

     You can prevent a control from getting the focus when the user is tabbing between controls by settings its IsTabStop property to False.

• pick up the tab
• tabbed

Likely to have been formed by clipping the Geordie pronunciation of the word tobacco or alternatively from the brand name Ogden's Tabs.

tab (plural tabs)

1. (Britain, regional, Geordie and Mackem) cigarette.

   Giv'is a tab man!

• The New Geordie Dictionary, Frank Graham, 1987, →ISBN

Clipping of tablature

tab (plural tabs)

1. A form of musical notation indicating fingering rather than the pitch of notes, commonly used for stringed instruments.

Clipping of Cantab, from Cantabrigian, from Latin Cantabrigia (“Cambridge”).

• Tab

tab (plural tabs)

1. (British slang) A student of Cambridge University.
   • 1995 January 20, Paul Thomas, “Re: >Re: Those 'orrible Tabs”, in rec.sport.rowing, Usenet‎:

     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.

   • 1995 February 7, "Laser Cartridge" [username], “Re: Cambridge News, again.”, in rec.sport.rowing, Usenet‎:

     Before Rachel gets in with a stab at the Tabs' coxing efforts, may I say that my experience of coxes on the Isis is somewhat similar.

   • 1998 January 17, whitey [username], “Re: Tab bashing (was University Challenge - Its pish)”, in rec.arts.tv.uk.misc, Usenet‎:

     Plus, there's always been a healthy rivalry between the tabs and us, but I'm sure this has nothing to do with it ;-)

   • 2002 March 27, The Guv'nor [username], “Re: My target this week was...”, in uk.rec.bodybuilding, Usenet‎:

     I hope the Tabs get beaten! :-) I support Oxford for no real reason but they have a bad habit of losing to Cambridge recently.

   • 2002 March 29, Caroline Smith, “Re: Lifejackets thread returns... [was Re: Boat Race]”, in rec.sport.rowing, Usenet‎:

     I have nothing against the girl (other than the fact she's a tab!), but it does strike me as a little daft!!

   • 2006 March 30, JY [username], “Veterans Boat Race (that's Oxford, England vs Cambridge, England)”, in rec.sport.rowing, Usenet‎:

     Anybody know who won? ¶ Or should that be, how much did the Tabs win by? ;-)

Clipping of tabloid.

tab (plural tabs)

1. (colloquial) A tabloid newspaper.
   • 1999, George H. Douglas, The Golden Age of the Newspaper, p. 229:

     By 1926 the tabloid mania was at full tilt, and the tabs in New York went at each other with hammer and tong.

   • 2010, Robert Lusetich, Unplayable: An Inside Account of Tiger's Most Tumultuous Season:

     That is the attitude of the tabs: they cover the world's most important city.

• ABT, ATB, B.T.A., BAT, Bat-, TBA, abt, abt., bat

tab ?

1. patience

Borrowed from English table (table → tab; compare French: table, Latin: tabula, Interlingua: tabula, Esperanto: tablo, Ido: tablo).

• IPA^(key): [tab]

tab (plural tabs)

1. table (item of furniture)

• taib