nab
verb (used with object)
to arrest or capture.
nab
1 American
[nab]
/ næb /
verb (used with object)
Informal.
nabs,
present (3rd person singular)
nabbed,
past participle, past
nabbing
present participle
-
to arrest or capture.
-
to catch or seize, especially suddenly.
-
to snatch or steal.
NAB
2
American
nab
British
/ næb /
verb
-
to arrest
-
to catch (someone) in wrongdoing
-
to seize suddenly; snatch
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
nabsimple
-
nabssimple
-
have nabbedperfect
-
has nabbedperfect
-
am nabbingprogressive
-
are nabbingprogressive
-
is nabbingprogressive
-
have been nabbingperfect progressive
-
has been nabbingperfect progressive
Past
-
nabbedsimple
-
had nabbedperfect
-
was nabbingprogressive
-
were nabbingprogressive
-
had been nabbingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of nab
1675–85; earlier nap; perhaps < Scandinavian; compare Danish nappe, Norwegian, Swedish nappa to snatch
Explanation
When you nab someone, you catch the person in the act of doing something wrong. A police officer, for example, might say that she loves to nab shoplifters. You nab when you apprehend a bad guy, or when you suddenly grab something: "Hey, you can't just nab a slice of pizza off my plate!" It's most common to use nab when a criminal is caught, as when the FBI nabs a suspected terrorist or an officer nabs a would-be graffiti artist. Nab probably came from an earlier word, nap, "to seize or catch," which is now obsolete except in the word kidnap.
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:
But, with six minutes remaining, a moment of Maradona magic settled the final - the forward's superb first-time half-volleyed through ball sent Jorge Burruchaga racing away to nab the winner.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Lacaze attributes her toughness to her modest upbringing in Brisbane, Australia, where she was the fourth of five children behind three brothers who tried to nab the food from her plate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026
If you’re hoping to nab tickets to the LA28 Olympics in the second drop coming in August, you might want to brace yourself.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 7, 2026
But the Fever staff were clearly elated to be able to nab Johnson off the board.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 14, 2026
“Probably a big school of mackerel. If I were looking for bait today, that would be great, but we want to nab bigger stuff.”
From "Shouting at the Rain" by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
The issue for JPY remains that fundamentals still point to weakness—deeply negative real yields, slow BoJ normalization and continuing JGB purchases—but thin U.S. holiday liquidity raises the tactical risk of intervention, NAB adds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
They observe that the average multiple across the big four banks of Commonwealth, Westpac, NAB and ANZ fell to 18.5X 12-month forward earnings by the end of May, down from 19.2X a month earlier.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 2, 2026
Putting Westpac’s result alongside those from rivals ANZ and NAB, the analysts see risks building as higher interest rates and a softer economy lead to slowing volumes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 6, 2026
NAB is the Australian lender most exposed to higher-risk sectors, it says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 23, 2026
Any AB and NAB naturals out there who want to share their regimen?
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
See also: Palantir’s stock nabs another upgrade, with its valuation now less of a ‘struggle’
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 16, 2026
Erivo has won rave reviews for her reprised role, so if she nabs a best Oscar win come March, and the coveted EGOT, it will be the cherry on the icing on the cake.
From BBC ● Dec. 29, 2025
Yet it still nabs some genre gems, often with something conceptually extra, recently including the meta “Magpie Murders” and its sequel, “Moonflower Murders.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2025
The Border Patrol, which nabs people who try to sneak in between official crossings, said its arrests along the U.S.-Mexico boundary dropped from nearly 184,000 in April to fewer than 100,000 in June.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 20, 2023
On the backseat next to us, I got a bag with a Thermos a apple juice, cheese nabs, peanuts, and two Co-Cola bottles that’s gone be like drinking coffee they gone be so hot.
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
The student-run Yale Hacker House, backed by alums and venture firms, nabbed a Nob Hill apartment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
It acquired Canada’s largest spice firm in 1959, and nabbed a California-based vegetable dehydrating plant in 1961.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
Kiki Rice led the Bruins with 21 points and Angela Dugalic nabbed her second double-double of the tournament with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2026
The law enforcement push, which analysts have criticised as window-dressing, nabbed its biggest player with the January arrest of Chinese-born tycoon Chen Zhi, who was extradited to China.
From Barron's ● Mar. 11, 2026
For another, Kate, unbeknownst to anyone, had swiped a pamphlet from Mr. Curtain’s press room, not to mention Mr. Curtain’s journal, which she’d nabbed on her way out of the Whispering Gallery.
From "The Mysterious Benedict Society" by Trenton Lee Stewart
After an indifferent first half, along with the rest of his team, he made a good start to the second half, nabbing two turnovers in quick succession.
From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2026
It found success nabbing enterprise contracts and raised capital at a blistering clip.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 3, 2026
"The win, that's the most important thing," said James, who received a standing ovation when he was subbed out for son Bronny James, seconds after nabbing his 10th rebound.
From Barron's ● Feb. 13, 2026
Apple TV+’s comedy “The Studio” earned 23 nominations, with Disney+’s “Star Wars” drama “Andor” landing 14, and FX on Hulu’s “The Bear” nabbing 13.
From Salon ● Jul. 16, 2025
When Will didn’t answer, Ben helped himself, nabbing a handful of fries from Will’s tray.
From "Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story" by Nora Raleigh Baskin
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.
