cabbage
gb/kˈæbɪd͡ʒ/ us/kˈæbɪd͡ʒ/
A2
English
~ 9600
káposzta, lóvé, zsé, zöldség, magatehetetlen roncs, anyagmaradék, szabási hulladék, lopkod, dézsmál
NOUN
A2
1
káposzta
A2
She shredded some cabbage to make coleslaw for the barbecue.
Felaprított egy kis káposztát, hogy káposztasalátát készítsen a grillezéshez.
Red cabbage adds a nice color to the salad.
A vörös káposzta szép színt ad a salátának.
We had boiled cabbage and potatoes with dinner.
He grows tomatoes, carrots, and cabbage in his garden.
Stir-fried cabbage with garlic is a simple but tasty side dish.
Learner examples
I bought a cabbage at the market.
Vettem egy fej káposztát a piacon.
She put fresh cabbage in the salad.
Friss káposztát tett a salátába.
They had rice, meat, and cooked cabbage for lunch.
My grandmother grows cabbage in her small garden.
He cut the cabbage into thin pieces.
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'cabbage' with 'lettuce'. Lettuce has softer leaves and is usually eaten raw, while cabbage has thicker leaves and is often cooked. Also, 'cabbage' can be both countable and uncountable: you can say 'three cabbages' (three whole heads) or 'some cabbage' (an amount of the vegetable).
Meaning
round leafy green vegetable
Collocations
shredded cabbage
|cabbage leaves
|red cabbage
|savoy cabbage
|cabbage soup
|cabbage salad
Synonyms
vegetable (More general; refers to all edible plants, not this specific kind.)
|
lettuce (Another leafy salad plant; used in similar dishes but is a different vegetable with softer leaves.)
Antonyms
meat (Contrasts plant-based food with animal-based food.)
|
fruit (Another major type of plant food, different in taste and use from leafy vegetables like cabbage.)
Themes
food
|daily life
|food_drink
|nature
Definition
A round vegetable with many thick green, white, or purple leaves that people eat raw in salads or cooked in many dishes.
A round or oval leafy vegetable of the species Brassica oleracea, with tightly packed green, white, or purple leaves, eaten raw or cooked.
NOUN
B2
SLANG
2
He made a lot of cabbage selling sneakers online.
Sok lóvét keresett azzal, hogy sportcipőket árult online.
I don’t have enough cabbage to go on vacation this year.
Idén nincs elég lóvém nyaralni menni.
She’s always talking about how to save more cabbage.
They blew all their cabbage on a new sound system.
If you want the best seats, you’ll need serious cabbage.
Learner examples
He works hard to make some cabbage.
Keményen dolgozik, hogy keressen egy kis lóvét.
I don’t have enough cabbage for a new phone.
Nincs elég lóvém egy új telefonra.
She saved her cabbage and bought a car.
They spent all their cabbage at the concert.
He wants more cabbage, so he got a second job.
Common mistake:
Learners may try to use this slang word in formal situations like business emails or job interviews. It is better to use neutral words like 'money' or 'cash' in formal contexts. Also, 'cabbage' in this sense is usually uncountable (you say 'some cabbage', not 'a cabbage' when you mean money).
Meaning
slang term for money
Collocations
count your cabbage
|lose your cabbage
|save some cabbage
|a stack of cabbage
|spend all your cabbage
Synonyms
cash (Neutral and very common; standard word instead of slang.)
|
dough (Very common slang for money, similar in tone to 'cabbage'.)
Antonyms
poverty (A state of having very little or no money.)
|
debt (Money that you owe instead of money that you have.)
Themes
money
|slang
|finance
|daily_life
Definition
Money, especially cash, said in a fun or slang way.
Money, especially paper cash, used as a playful or slang term.
NOUN
C1
INFORMAL
3
zöldség
C1
The tabloids cruelly described him as a cabbage after the accident.
A bulvárlapok kegyetlenül zöldségnek nevezték őt a baleset után.
She said she would rather die than live as a cabbage on a hospital bed.
Azt mondta, inkább meghalna, mint hogy zöldségként feküdjön egy kórházi ágyon.
Using words like 'cabbage' for disabled people is deeply offensive.
He lay there like a cabbage, unable to speak or move.
Doctors warned the family that he might remain a cabbage for the rest of his life.
Learner examples
The word 'cabbage' for a sick person is very rude.
A „zöldség” szó beteg emberre használva nagyon sértő.
Some people called him a cabbage after his brain injury.
Néhányan zöldségnek nevezték az agysérülése után.
Do not call a disabled person a cabbage.
She was afraid of living like a cabbage in a hospital.
The newspaper used the word 'cabbage', and many people were angry.
Common mistake:
Learners might not realize how offensive this use is. It should generally be avoided, especially when talking directly about or to disabled or seriously ill people. Use neutral medical terms like 'in a coma' or 'severely brain-damaged' instead.
Meaning
severely unresponsive, brain-damaged person
Collocations
left a cabbage
|like a cabbage in bed
|turn into a cabbage
|lie there like a cabbage
Synonyms
vegetable (Same insulting metaphor; more common than 'cabbage' for this meaning.)
Antonyms
live wire (An informal term for a very lively and energetic person, opposite of unresponsive.)
|
alert person (Someone who is mentally awake and responsive.)
Themes
people
|health
Definition
A very rude word for a person who is alive but cannot move or think normally because of serious brain injury or illness.
An offensive term for a person who is alive but has almost no mental or physical response, for example after severe brain damage, and is seen as unable to think or act independently.
NOUN
C1
TECHNICAL
4
anyagmaradék
B1
In traditional tailoring, the cutter was sometimes allowed to keep the cabbage.
A hagyományos szabóságokban a szabász néha megtarthatta az anyagmaradékot.
She used the cabbage from previous projects to make patchwork cushions.
A korábbi munkákból megmaradt anyagmaradékokat patchwork párnák készítésére használta fel.
The shop sells bags of cabbage and other fabric offcuts for crafts.
Cabbage was often quietly sold on the side to make extra money.
He measured carefully so there would be very little cabbage left over.
Learner examples
She kept the cabbage from the dress and made a small bag.
Megtartotta a ruha készítésekor megmaradt anyagmaradékot, és egy kis táskát készített belőle.
He bought a bag of cabbage for a school art project.
Vett egy zsák anyagmaradékot egy iskolai kézműves projekthez.
There was not much cabbage after they cut the shirts.
They used the cabbage to make a patchwork blanket.
The tailor sold the cabbage from old jobs.
Common mistake:
This meaning is rare and mostly appears in older texts or in specific jobs like tailoring. Learners may think it still refers to the vegetable; the context of sewing or fabric is the main clue.
Meaning
leftover cloth pieces from cutting
Collocations
sell the cabbage
|keep the cabbage
|use the cabbage for lining
|bundle of cabbage
Synonyms
offcuts (Neutral technical term for leftover pieces; not limited to cloth.)
|
scraps (General word for small leftover pieces; less specific to tailoring.)
Antonyms
main fabric (The large, intended pieces of cloth used for the garment, not the leftovers.)
|
whole cloth (Fabric that has not been cut into pieces yet.)
Themes
work
|craft
|clothing
Definition
Small extra pieces of cloth that are left after you cut the main parts of clothes.
Small pieces of cloth that are left over after cutting out the main parts of a garment, traditionally in tailoring and dressmaking.
VERB
C2
INFORMAL
5
Usage pattern:
to cabbage [something] from [a place or person]
He was fired after they caught him cabbaging tools from the warehouse.
Kirúgták, miután rajtakapták, hogy szerszámokat lopkod a raktárból.
The manager suspected that someone had been cabbaging small amounts of cash from the till.
Az üzletvezető azt gyanította, hogy valaki kisebb összegeket lopkod a kasszából.
They used to cabbage leftover fabric and sell it on the side.
Workers would quietly cabbage supplies and take them home.
She denied cabbaging any of the company’s materials.
Learner examples
He lost his job because he cabbaged money from the shop.
Elvesztette az állását, mert pénzt lopkodott a boltból.
They cabbaged some cloth from the factory.
Szövetet lopkodtak a gyárból.
The boss thinks someone is cabbaging goods from the store.
Do not cabbage things from your workplace.
The worker was seen cabbaging tools from the box.
Common mistake:
This verb is rare and old-fashioned. Learners may think it is related to the vegetable meaning or may not understand it at all. In modern English, it is much more natural to use verbs like 'steal', 'take', or 'pilfer' instead of 'cabbage' in this sense.
Meaning
steal small amounts from work
Collocations
cabbage materials from work
|cabbage a bit off the top
|cabbage some cloth
|caught cabbaging supplies
Synonyms
pilfer (More formal; commonly used in writing, especially about workplace theft.)
|
swipe (Informal; often used for stealing quickly or casually.)
Antonyms
return (To give back something that was taken.)
|
hand over (To give something to the person who should have it, instead of keeping it.)
Themes
crime
|work
|law
Definition
To secretly take a small amount of things or money, often from your job, when it is not yours.
To steal or quietly take small amounts of materials, goods, or money, especially from one’s workplace or from supplies one is managing.
Grammar
Dictionary form
cabbage
IPA
GB/kˈæbɪd͡ʒ/
US/kˈæbɪd͡ʒ/
Syllables & stress
cab - bage (2 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (cab)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: cabbage
- Plural: cabbage, cabbages
Word family
Forms
cabbages
noun
Expressions
cabbage head
1/kˈæbɪd͡ʒ hˈɛd/
idiom
informal
insult for a very stupid person
An insulting name for someone who is thought to be very stupid.
Examples
- He called his brother a cabbage head for forgetting the tickets.
- Don’t be such a cabbage head; read the instructions first.
- The kids used to tease him and call him a cabbage head at school.
cabbage patch
1/kˈæbɪd͡ʒ pˈæt͡ʃ/
fixed phrase
small garden for cabbages
A small piece of land in a garden or field where cabbages are grown.
Examples
- They grow most of their vegetables in a little cabbage patch behind the house.
- The rabbits keep getting into the cabbage patch and eating the plants.
- He showed the children how to weed the cabbage patch.
corned beef and cabbage
1/kˈɔɹnɪd bˈif ˈænd kˈæbɪd͡ʒ/
fixed phrase
dish of corned beef with cabbage
A traditional meal of salty cooked beef and cooked cabbage, often eaten on or around St Patrick’s Day in some countries.
Examples
- We always have corned beef and cabbage on St Patrick’s Day.
- The restaurant is serving corned beef and cabbage as today’s special.
- He cooked corned beef and cabbage for his Irish-American family.