/ ˈtæbi; NAmE / noun
( pl. -ies ) (also ˈtabby cat ) a cat with brown or grey fur marked with dark lines or spots
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WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent. (denoting a kind of silk taffeta, originally striped, later with a watered finish): from French tabis , based on Arabic al-'Attābiyya , the name of the quarter of Baghdad where tabby was manufactured.