How to use drab in a sentence

40 example sentences · noun, adjective, verb

Drab means a fabric, usually of thick cotton or wool, having a dull brownish yellow, dull grey, or dun colour. Example: “The old silver lends an air of elegance to an otherwise drab room.”

Examples of drab by meaning

nounOften in the plural form drabs: apparel, especially trousers, made from this fabric.

Yet here was a young woman dressed in drab and severely hair pinned.1907 October, Jane Armstrong, “Woman Architect who Helped Build the Fairmont Hotel”, in The Architect and Engineer of California, volume X...

nounA dull or uninteresting appearance or situation, unremarkable.

The 1970s cartoon traumatised generations of children, but the new version is tame, drab and deeply unsatisfying.2018 December 23, Lucy Mangan, “WatershipDown review - CGI rabbits can't save this Christmas turkey”, in The Guardian
A drab office block sandwiched between a pub and a branch of Starbucks was a secret base of spy agency GCHQ, it has been confirmed.2019 April 5, Joseph Lee, “Drab London office block was GCHQ spy base”, in BBC

adjectiveParticularly of color: dull, uninteresting.

The more he basked in golden dreams the drabber seemed his humdrum life behind the bank counter.1923 April, Harold Steevens, “The Duplicate Cheque”, in [Herbert Greenhough Smith], editor, The Strand Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly...
For some it looks its drabbest, for others it sparkles and looks, if not handsome, at any rate comfortable.1944, Emily Carr, “Sounds and Silences”, in The House of All Sorts, Toronto, Ont.; London: Oxford University Press, →OCLC, page 10
In a drab first half, Ryan Shotton's drive was deflected on to a post and Jon Walters twice went close.2011 November 3, David Ornstein, “Macc Tel-Aviv 1 – 2 Stoke”, in BBC Sport, archived from the original on 26 Mar 2019

nounA dirty or untidy woman; a slattern.

The doss house emptied during the day; from ten o'clock until five or six in the evening, there was no one there except Mulliver, a drab who did some of the cleaning for him, and occasional visitors.1956, J. J. Marric [pseudonym; John Creasey], “Father and Son”, in Gideon’s Week, London: Hodder & Stoughton, →OCLC, page 154; republished...

nounA promiscuous woman, a slut; a prostitute.

Ineffable sarcasm underlined the word 'bride', suggesting that Mrs Mudge must be a drab who had married for respectability.1957, Frank Swinnerton, The Woman from Sicily, London: Hutchinson, →OCLC, page 194

nounA small amount, especially of money.

He could play good guy and give them a few drabs of info to sweeten things.2009 April, Michael Z. Williamson, chapter 4, in Contact with Chaos, Riverdale, N.Y.: Baen Publishing Enterprises, →ISBN
He reached for another candy bar and hungrily devoured it, as fetid drabs of water fell on him from the ceiling.2015, Robert Levy, The Glittering World, New York, N.Y.: Gallery Books, →ISBN
If my aim had any effect, Germany would be short a few drabs of ale.2018, Lewis A. Haeflinger, “In My Dreams”, in Life in the World Wind, New York, N.Y.: Page Publishing, →ISBN

nounAn instance of a transgender or non-binary person presenting as the gender corresponding to their sex assigned at birth...

Just for those who may not be aware of the term, “drab” is how you might describe a transgendered person (including transsexuals, crossdressers, drag queens, etc.) that is presenting as their birth sex.2012 November 1, Jocelyn Samara D., “Comic 278 - Ch. 12 - Drab”, in Rain, archived from the original on 21 Jan 2020

More sentences with drab

The old silver lends an air of elegance to an otherwise drab room.From the entry lend
The supervising teacher's stern expression at the front of the drab study hall left little doubt that no nonsense would be tolerated there.From the entry study hall
It seemed that Fen had passed his wife a couple of telling pictures, whereupon the drab Mrs.2014, K.J. Charles, Think of England, page 166. From the entry brain
Beanie hair: Officially the worst hat hair to have: flat, fuzzy and drab.2012 December 7, Zara, “The Measure: what's hot and what's not”, in The Guardian, retrieved 13 Mar 2018. From the entry hat hair
Showy peacocks attract more predators, but they outbreed drabber rivals just because peahens adore flashy tails.2009 February 22, Lynn Phillips, “Survival of the Hippest”, in New York Times. From the entry outbreed
Here was a young woman dressed in drab and severely hairpinned.2006, Karen Ann McNeill, Building the California Women's Movement, page 128. From the entry hairpinned
Some webbers are drab, colorless, and small, preferring to spin their webs in dark cellars.2000, Peter Loewer, The Wild Gardener: On Flowers and Foliage for the Natural Border, page 130. From the entry webber
The smaller 9 9 have less elongated fins, drabber corporal colors, and more transparent fins.1998, Rüdiger Riehl, Aquarium Atlas, volume 3, page 572. From the entry corporal
She was drab and depressed and seemed to be trying not to cry.1981, Diana Wynne Jones, The Time of the Ghost, New York, N.Y.: Beech Tree, published 1997, →ISBN, page 123. From the entry hawkiness
Much of it is just roughly churned rock, much is flat and drab.1927, Louise Jordan Miln, In a Yün-nan Courtyard, Frederick A. Stokes Company, page 914. From the entry Yün-nan
These are whites, blacks, feminas, byocks, spadonas, boos, drabs and floss.1909 August 12, “Ostrich Feathers of Tripoli”, in Neenah Daily Times, volume 53, number 8,451, Neenah, Wis.; Menasha, Wis., column 5. From the entry white
Looking at their drab boxer short type navy blue bathing suits, I thought I understood what motivated their request.2016, Mort Greer, The Whole Shebang, Lulu, →ISBN, page 96. From the entry boxer short
“All right you bunch of feather-merchants, let's get this show on the road!” barked a sergeant dressed in army olive drab.2013, Richard C. Kirkland, Wide Place In The Road: A Great Generation Love Story, page 327. From the entry feather merchant
A drab series of duochrome fashions reflected the comparatively flat progression of the country through the first half of this century.2012, Robin Boyd, The Australian Ugliness, page 42. From the entry duochrome
Beyond lay the stately drab edifices of East Germany’s showpiece, now thronged with würste and sauerkraut sellers catering to the crowds.1995, Robert Harvey, “The Thaw and the Flood”, in The Return of the Strong: The Drift to Global Disorder, London: Macmillan London, →ISBN…. From the entry wurst
Pale yellow and greyish brown, the bare veld of late summer lay flat and listless under the drab sky.1979, André Brink, chapter 1, in A Dry White Season, 1st U.S. edition, New York, N.Y.: William Morrow and Company, published 1980, →ISBN…. From the entry veld
The hotel was drab and decayed exteriorly; but the dining room was a continental elegance of marble, gilt, and mirrors.1922, Edgar Lee Masters, Children of the Market Place. From the entry exteriorly
They survived a poor second half in Italy and a drab first half-hour here but the end results certainly count as a job well done.2023 March 26, Phil McNulty, “England 2-0 Ukraine”, in BBC Sport. From the entry well done
Passengers join in dribs and drabs along the way, but at Barnsley the numbers really began to swell and by Elsecar we have several standing.2020 November 18, Paul Bigland, “New infrastructure and new rolling stock”, in Rail, page 48. From the entry dribs and drabs
He transferred his attention to Isabelle, resting his hand on her arm as he glared at the ring of barrel helms and drab grey surcoats.2018, Graham Shelby, The Wolf at the Door, Canelo, →ISBN. From the entry barrel helm
He leaned down to inspect a white-quilled cactus, and then spotted a different kind with skinnier branches and only a few drab spines.2010, T. Lloyd Winetsky, Maria Juana's Gift: A Novel, Sunstone Press, published 2010, →ISBN, page 148. From the entry quilled
The afternoon was Septemberish as the little family of six loaded up in the olive drab “54” and headed to their new home.2009, Cleveland Jones, The Firescalds Road To the Sky, page 145. From the entry Septemberish
This is yaa-boo, in-yer-face, up-yours theatre, vaguely but crudely feminist; a Punch and Judy show with drab dialogue of naff lower-middle-class cliches.2002, Theatre Record - Volume 22, Issues 19-26, page 1226. From the entry yaa-boo
Some starlings are drab, but the incandescent glossy and plum-colored starlings (43) with their petroleum sheen more than make up for it.2000, Melissa Shales, Fodor’s Exploring South Africa, 3rd edition, New York, N.Y.: Fodor’s Travel Publications, →ISBN, page 273. From the entry plum-colored starling
Their children, with unpronounceable, unspellable names, came to school in tattered clothes, the boys in drab vests and the girls in more colorful ones.1992, Hayden Carruth, Suicides and Jazzers. From the entry unspellable
I finally decided, my heart was really in my singing rather than in the drab, hardy soul- searing toil and moil of a collier's existence.1928, Harry Lauder, chapter VII, in Roamin' in the Gloamin',. From the entry moil
Day after day, for 10 days, Stones and his client rose before dawn, dressed themselves in clothes of a drab dry-leaf green and set out on the trail.2026 April 21, Cal Flyn, “On the trail with the hunters who believe shooting big game can save Africa’s wildlife”, in The Guardian. From the entry parity
Despite the drab backdrop of his performances—a dimly lit bathroom with a popcorn ceiling—his grooves were both riveting and infectious, earning him plaudits from several TikTok stalwarts.2021 May 7, Barrett Swanson, “The Anxiety of Influencers”, in Harper's Magazine. From the entry popcorn ceiling

Meaning of drab

noun A fabric, usually of thick cotton or wool, having a dull brownish yellow, dull grey, or dun colour.
noun The color of this fabric.
noun Often in the plural form drabs: apparel, especially trousers, made from this fabric.

Full definition of drab

Questions about drab in a sentence

How do you use drab in a sentence?: Drab is used as a noun, adjective and verb. For example: “The old silver lends an air of elegance to an otherwise drab room.”
What is a short sentence with drab?: “Here was a young woman dressed in drab and severely hairpinned.”
What does drab mean?: Drab means a fabric, usually of thick cotton or wool, having a dull brownish yellow, dull grey, or dun colour.

Adapted from Wiktionary: drab (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this page: “How to use drab in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/drab. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.