jab
verb (used with object)
to poke, or thrust abruptly or sharply, as with the end or point of a stick or with the finger or elbow.
had been jabbing
-
past perfect progressiveof jab.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
I looked down and realized that I had been jabbing a hole in the wicker arm with my pencil.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
With the privilege of an old school-fellow and college classmate, he had been jabbing the soft coal with his walking-stick, causing it to burst into tiny flames.
From The Lost House by Richard Harding Davis
The sky, the wind, the telegraph poles, had been jabbing in the harsh lesson of these men's voices, that the church, as people say, "wasn't in it."
From Soul of a Bishop by H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
