squab

Noun · Adjective
Synonyms: dovesquabby

Open English WordNet

Noun (3)

  1. flesh of a pigeon suitable for roasting or braising; flesh of a dove (young squab) may be broiledSynonyms: doveType of poultryPart of domestic pigeon
  2. a soft padded sofaType of sofa, couch
  3. an unfledged pigeonType of pigeon

Adjective (1)

  1. short and fatSynonyms: squabbyOpposite tallSimilar short, little
Word of the day · Oct 16About this word
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Webster's Dictionary (1913)

Squab (skwŏb), adjective

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

1. Fat; thick; plump; bulky.

Nor the squab daughter nor the wife were nice.— Thomas Betterton

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

Squab noun

1. Zoology A nestling 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.— William 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.— Charles Dickens
On her large squab you find her spread.— Alexander Pope
Squab adverb

Origin: Cf. dial. Sw. sqvapp, a word imitative of a splash, and E. squab fat, unfledged.

With a heavy fall; plump. vulgar

The eagle took the tortoise up into the air, and dropped him down, squab, upon a rock.— Sir Roger L'Estrange
Squab intransitive verb

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

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54

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