[f. prec.]
1. trans. To give a wavy appearance to (silk, etc.) by calendering. Hence Tabbying vbl. sb.
1728. Chambers, Cycl., s.v. Roll, Tis also between two Rollers that the Waves are given to Silks, Mohairs, and other Stuffs proper to be tabied.
1839. Ure, Dict. Arts, 1225. Tabbying, or Watering, is the process of giving stuffs a wavy appearance with the calender.
2. To stripe or streak in parallel lines with darker markings. Usually in pa. pple. Tabbied.
1860. All Year Round, No. 37. 260. They [mackerel] were tabbied with indigo tattooings.
1870. Thornbury, Tour Eng., II. xix. 49. The beautiful fish, shining like solid lumps of rainbow, tabbied with dark veins.
