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grab1

[grab]
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verb (used with object), grabbed, grab·bing.
  1. to seize suddenly or quickly; snatch; clutch: He grabbed me by the collar.
  2. to take illegal possession of; seize forcibly or unscrupulously: to grab land.
  3. to obtain and consume quickly: Let's grab a sandwich before going to the movie.
  4. Slang.
    1. to cause a reaction in; affect: How does my idea grab you?
    2. to arouse the interest or excitement of: The book was O.K., but it just didn't grab me.
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verb (used without object), grabbed, grab·bing.
  1. to make a grasping or clutching motion (usually followed by at): He grabbed frantically at the life preserver.
  2. (of brakes, a clutch, etc.) to take hold suddenly or with a jolting motion; bind.
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noun
  1. a sudden, quick grasp or snatch: to make a grab at something.
  2. seizure or acquisition by violent or unscrupulous means.
  3. something that is grabbed.
  4. a mechanical device for gripping objects.
  5. the capacity to hold or adhere: The glue was so old it had lost its grab.
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Idioms
  1. up for grabs, Informal. available to anyone willing to expend the energy to get it: The Republican nomination for mayor was up for grabs.
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Origin of grab1

1580–90; cognate with Middle Dutch, Middle Low German grabben, Swedish grabba
Related formsgrab·ba·ble, adjectiveun·grab·bing, adjective

Synonyms

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1. grasp, grip, catch.

grab2

[grab]
noun
  1. a ship having two or three masts with a square rig, common on the Malabar Coast in the 18th and 19th centuries.
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Origin of grab2

First recorded in 1670–80, grab is from the Arabic word ghurāb literally, raven
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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British Dictionary definitions for grabs

grab

verb grabs, grabbing or grabbed
  1. to seize hold of (something)
  2. (tr) to seize illegally or unscrupulously
  3. (tr) to arrest; catch
  4. (intr) (of a brake or clutch in a vehicle) to grip and release intermittently causing juddering
  5. (tr) informal to catch the attention or interest of; impress
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noun
  1. the act or an instance of grabbing
  2. a mechanical device for gripping objects, esp the hinged jaws of a mechanical excavator
  3. something that is grabbed
  4. up for grabs informal available to be bought, claimed, or won
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Derived Formsgrabber, noun

Word Origin

C16: probably from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch grabben; related to Swedish grabba, Sanskrit grbhnāti he seizes
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for grabs

grab

n.

1777, "thing grabbed;" 1824, "act of grabbing," from grab (v.). Up for grabs attested from 1945 in jive talk.

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grab

v.

1580s, from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German grabben "to grab," from Proto-Germanic *grab (cf. Old English græppian "to seize," Old Saxon garva, Old High German garba "sheaf," literally "that which is gathered up together"), from PIE *ghrebh- "to seize, reach" (cf. Sanskrit grbhnati "seizes," Old Persian grab- "seize" as possession or prisoner, Old Church Slavonic grabiti "to seize, rob," Lithuanian grebiu "to rake"). Sense of "to get by unscrupulous methods" reinforced by grab game, a kind of swindle, attested from 1846. Related: Grabbed; grabbing.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with grabs

grab

In addition to the idiom beginning with grab

  • grab bag

also see:

  • how does that grab you
  • up for grabs
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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.