cab
B1Informal, everyday
Definition
Meaning
A taxi; a vehicle for hire with a driver, typically a car.
1. The driver's compartment of a truck, bus, or train. 2. (Historical) A horse-drawn carriage for public hire. 3. (Computing) A cabinet file, a compressed archive format in Windows.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
In everyday use, 'cab' is synonymous with 'taxi'. The term is less formal than 'taxicab' and is the standard short form. The computing sense is technical jargon.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Both use 'cab' for taxi. In the UK, 'black cab' specifically refers to the iconic London taxi. In the US, 'cab' is very common, but 'taxi' is equally frequent.
Connotations
Neutral in both. In the UK, 'black cab' carries cultural/iconic connotations. In the US, no strong regional connotations.
Frequency
Slightly more frequent in American English for the vehicle sense. The truck 'cab' sense is equally common in both varieties.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[verb] a cab (call, hail, take, get)by cabin a/the cabVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “cab it (informal: go by taxi)”
- “in the driver's seat/cab (in control)”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Rare, except in expense reports: 'Cab fare for client meeting.'
Academic
Very rare, except in historical/urban studies contexts.
Everyday
Very common for referring to taxis.
Technical
Specific use in computing (.cab files) and transport (truck cab).
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- We had to cab it to the airport after the train was cancelled.
American English
- He cabbed across town to make the meeting on time.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- I go to work by cab.
- The cab is yellow.
- Let's hail a cab, it's starting to rain.
- The cab fare to the city centre was quite expensive.
- The lorry driver spent hours in his cab during the long haul.
- We managed to flag down a cab just before the theatre curtain went up.
- The software update is distributed as a .cab file for efficiency.
- He cabbed it to the station, his mind racing with the implications of the news.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of CAB as 'Car Awaits Booking' or simply remember the short, sharp sound matches the quick trip.
Conceptual Metaphor
A CAB IS A CONTAINER FOR TRANSPORT (get in/out of a cab). A CAB IS A SERVICE (call for a cab).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Do not confuse with 'кабина' (cabin, cockpit) in all contexts. 'Cab' primarily means такси. The truck compartment is 'кабина (грузовика)', which is a direct cognate but a different primary sense.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'cab' for any car (e.g., 'my personal cab'). Using 'a cab' as an uncountable noun (*'by cab' is correct, but 'by a cab' is wrong).
Practice
Quiz
In which context does 'cab' NOT refer to a vehicle for transport?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
In spoken American English, they are equally common. In the UK, 'taxi' is slightly more formal, but 'cab' is very widespread. 'Cab' is often used with verbs like 'hail' or 'call'.
In the UK, a 'cab' (or 'black cab', 'hackney carriage') can be hailed on the street and uses a taximeter. A 'minicab' must be pre-booked through a minicab office or app and usually quotes a fixed fare.
Yes, informally, especially in the phrase 'cab it' (UK) or 'cabbed' (US), meaning to travel by taxi. It is more common in informal speech than formal writing.
It is a shortening of 'cabriolet', a light horse-drawn carriage, which itself came from French 'cabrioler' (to leap). The term was later applied to motorised vehicles.