squab

== English == === Etymology === Unknown. Possibly related to dialectal Swedish skvabb (“fatty, flabby”). First attested in the 17th century. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈskwɒb/ (General American) IPA(key): /ˈskwɑb/ Rhymes: -ɒb === Noun === squab (countable and uncountable, plural squabs) (countable, sometimes attributive) A fledgling (young) bird. A young dove or pigeon. Synonyms: piper, squeaker A young chicken. Synonym: chick A young rook. (uncountable) The meat of young dove or pigeon, typically under four weeks old, used as food. (countable) A thick cushion, especially a flat one covering the seat of a chair or sofa. a. 1744, Alexander Pope (imitating Earl of Dorset), Artemisia, 1795, Robert Anderson (editor), A Complete Edition of the Poets of Great Britain, page 86, On her large ſquab you find her ſpread, / Like a fat corpſe upon a bed, / That lies and ſtinks in ſtate. (countable) A person of a short, fat figure. ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Verb === squab (third-person singular simple present squabs, present participle squabbing, simple past and past participle squabbed) (obsolete) To fall plump; to strike at one dash, or with a heavy stroke. (transitive) To furnish with squabs, or cushions. (transitive) To stuff thickly and sew through, the stitches being concealed by buttons, etc. === Adjective === squab (comparative more squab, superlative most squab) Fat; thick; plump; bulky. Unfledged; unfeathered. Clumsy. Curt; abrupt. Shy; coy. === Adverb === squab (not comparable) (slang) With a heavy fall; plump. === Further reading === “squab”, in Merriam-Webster.com Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present. “squab”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC. === Anagrams === quabs