gab
verb (used without object)
to talk or chat idly; chatter.
gab
1 American
[gab]
/ gæb /
verb (used without object)
gabs,
present (3rd person singular)
gabbed,
past participle, past
gabbing
present participle
noun
gab
2
American
[gab]
/ gæb /
noun
Machinery.
gab
3
American
[gab]
/ gæb /
noun
Scot. Slang.
gab
1
British
/ ɡæb /
verb
noun
-
idle or trivial talk
-
ability to speak effortlessly, glibly, or persuasively
gab
2
British
/ ɡæb /
noun
-
a hook or open notch in a rod or lever that drops over the spindle of a valve to form a temporary connection for operating the valve
-
a pointed tool used in masonry
GAB
3
British
abbreviation
gab
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
gabsimple
-
gabssimple
-
have gabbedperfect
-
has gabbedperfect
-
am gabbingprogressive
-
are gabbingprogressive
-
is gabbingprogressive
-
have been gabbingperfect progressive
-
has been gabbingperfect progressive
Past
-
gabbedsimple
-
had gabbedperfect
-
was gabbingprogressive
-
were gabbingprogressive
-
had been gabbingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of gab1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English noun gab, gabbe “deceit, falsehood, idle talk”; probably from Old Norse gabba “to mock”; cf. gabble
Origin of gab2
First recorded in 1790–95; origin uncertain; possibly from Dutch dialect gabbe “notch, gash”
Explanation
When you gab, you chatter on and on. You might like to gab on the phone with your friend after school. To talk and talk, especially about gossipy or trivial things, is to gab. Your dad might gab over the fence with the neighbor, and you may sit in the front of the bus so you can gab with the friendly driver. You can also describe the chatter itself as gab. The oldest meaning of gab may come from thirteenth century Scottish dialect, "to reproach," although it may in fact be rooted in the Old French gobe, "mouthful or lump."
Vocabulary lists containing gab
Talk the Talk: Synonyms for "Wordy"
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The Egypt Game
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Absolutely Normal Chaos
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
"Laurent had the good-natured gab, Simone the uncompromising discourse," French newspaper Le Monde said of the Gbagbos' political partnership.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2025
Workplaces provided easy ways to form friendships or at least gab by the water cooler—a particularly important resource in a country where 15 percent of Americans have one close friend, if any.
From Slate ● Nov. 26, 2024
They love to gab and hang out with the family.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2024
She is one of the only co-hosts to leave on her own — without being fired — in the gab fest's history.
From Salon ● Mar. 6, 2024
Behind Nat a deep voice rumbled, “Avast there, Ben Meeker! Stow that gab about being becalmed!”
From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham
“The new GAB will enable constituents, visitors and all interested parties to more easily observe and actively participate in the lawmaking process,” House Speaker Todd Gilbert said in a statement.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 30, 2023
Bell did not work on the investigation and publicly criticized the former GAB last week, saying he left it because he thought it was mismanaged and unfairly enforcing the law.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 22, 2018
He also asked that one of them, former GAB attorney Shane Falk, face discipline from the Office of Lawyer Regulation.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 17, 2017
The GAB was dissolved and replaced with separate Ethics and Elections commissions.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 12, 2017
Thou art one of the knights of France, who hold it for glee and pastime to GAB, as they term it, of exploits that are beyond human power.
From The Talisman by Scott, Walter, Sir
Paul puts ‘bust’ in filibuster He doesn’t make it on the list of longest Senate gabs — but reading from Twitter instead of phone books might be a first.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 8, 2013
And in an era in which Lady Gaga gabs on about subverting gender and sexuality norms, these fellows strut the strut.
From New York Times ● Aug. 1, 2012
Mark, a towering, perennially upbeat presence, relentlessly gabs away; Jay, short and bearded, lingers alongside.
From New York Times ● Jun. 11, 2010
Scarlet gabs on a phone attached to the wall, Ruby reads a book, and Carmen admires herself in the sunlight that cascades through a window.
From Slate ● May 26, 2009
Mrs. Fischer gabs about our quest to save the coyote until Ms. Andrews cuts her off.
From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz
I regrouped with my friends outside, mentally preoccupied as they gabbed about more interesting matters.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2023
After her first date with now-fiancé Chris about a year ago, she gabbed with Marmo like any girlfriend would.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 2, 2022
“I thought she was stunning, unpretentious and real. She asked about Bella and didn’t talk about herself. We gabbed until 3 a.m.”
From New York Times ● Nov. 12, 2021
Just around the corner from the VA hospital where Cline worked, families huddled maskless and gabbed over heaps of pasta at the local Olive Garden.
From Salon ● Jan. 1, 2021
"I don't have one, remember? You gabbed every other bit of me quick enough."
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
As far as we can tell, Trump didn’t talk to Kamala Harris, in the row ahead of him, beside the Bidens, though she did shoot a look at Obama and Trump while they were gabbing.
From Slate ● Jan. 9, 2025
Sure, sometimes coworkers can feel like friends, but that doesn’t mean you can spend an hour gabbing about last night’s date.
From Salon ● Jan. 6, 2025
And the last scene of “Maisel” jumps ahead several decades and we see the two women as seniors still gabbing, but now via phone as they are no longer living in the same city.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2023
Residents go to the post office on Fetters Mill Road near the old train tracks to snag their letters and packages while gabbing with friends and relatives they run into.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 21, 2022
The night before the trip, we sisters stayed up late packing and gabbing.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
