tabby

n. brown or grey cat with striped markings; domestic female cat; (Textile) shiny taffeta that has a striped pattern, silk having a watered pattern; old maid, unmarried woman beyond the usual age of marriage, spinster; irritating woman gossiper; cement made of lime and oyster shells and sand used as a building material (used along the South Atlantic coast in the USA)

adj. brindled, pale gray or tan and marked with darker spots and streaks; made of tabby (Textile); that looks like tabby (Textile)

v. give a wavy look

A tabby is a cat with a distinctive coat that features stripes, dots, or swirling patterns. Tabbies are often mistakenly assumed to be a breed of cat. In fact, the tabby pattern is a naturally occurring feature that may be the original coloration of the domestic cat's distant ancestors. Tabby coloration is found in many breeds of cat, as well as among the general 'moggy' (mixed-breed or mongrel) population. When cats are allowed to breed randomly, the coloration of the population tends toward brown mackerel tabbies with green eyes, leading geneticists to believe that this is the common wild phenotype of the domestic cat. The tabby usually has an "M" mark on its forehead.
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Noun
1. a cat with a gray or tawny coat mottled with black
(synonym) tabby cat
(hypernym) domestic cat, house cat, Felis domesticus, Felis catus
2. female cat
(synonym) queen
(hypernym) domestic cat, house cat, Felis domesticus, Felis catus
Adjective
1. having a gray or brown streak or a pattern or a patchy coloring; used especially of the patterned fur of cats
(synonym) brindled, brindle, brinded
(similar) patterned

(v. t.)
To water; to cause to look wavy, by the process of calendering; to calender; as, to tabby silk, mohair, ribbon, etc.
  

(n.)
An old maid or gossip.
  

(n.)
A mixture of lime with shells, gravel, or stones, in equal proportions, with an equal proportion of water. When dry, this becomes as hard as rock.
  

(n.)
A kind of waved silk, usually called watered silk, manufactured like taffeta, but thicker and stronger. The watering is given to it by calendering.
  

(n.)
A brindled cat; hence, popularly, any cat.
  

(a.)
Having a wavy or watered appearance; as, a tabby waistcoat.
  

(a.)
Brindled; diversified in color; as, a tabby cat.
  

Any of a variety of common coat patterns produced by a combination of nonagouti hairs (in the characteristic stripes and blotches) and agouti hairs (in between the stripes). The four traditional tabby patterns are mackerel, classic, spotted, and ticked.