stab
verb (used with object)
to pierce or wound with or as if with a pointed weapon.
stab
1 American
[stab]
/ stæb /
verb (used with object)
stabbed,
stabbing
-
to pierce or wound with or as if with a pointed weapon.
She stabbed a piece of chicken with her fork.
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to thrust, plunge, or jab (a knife, pointed weapon, or the like) into something.
He stabbed the knife into the man's chest.
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to penetrate sharply or painfully.
Their misery stabbed his conscience.
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to make a piercing, thrusting, or pointing motion at or in.
He stabbed me in the chest with his finger.
The speaker stabbed the air in anger.
verb (used without object)
stabbed,
stabbing
-
to thrust with or as if with a knife or other pointed weapon.
to stab at an attacker.
-
to deliver a wound, as with a pointed weapon.
noun
idioms
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stab (someone) in the back, to do harm to (someone), especially to a friend or to a person who is unsuspecting or in a defenseless position.
-
a stab in the back, an act of treachery.
stab.
2
American
abbreviation
-
stabilization.
-
stabilizer.
-
stable.
stab
British
/ stæb /
verb
-
(tr) to pierce or injure with a sharp pointed instrument
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(tr) (of a sharp pointed instrument) to pierce or wound
the knife stabbed her hand
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to make a thrust (at); jab
he stabbed at the doorway
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(tr) to inflict with a sharp pain
-
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(verb) to do damage to the reputation of (a person, esp a friend) in a surreptitious way
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(noun) a treacherous action or remark that causes the downfall of or injury to a person
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noun
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the act or an instance of stabbing
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an injury or rift made by stabbing
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a sudden sensation, esp an unpleasant one
a stab of pity
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informal an attempt (esp in the phrase make a stab at )
stab
More Idioms
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of stab
First recorded in 1435–45 for the noun, and in 1525–35 for the verb; Middle English ( Scots ) noun stab, stabbe, stappe, of uncertain origin; compare Scots stob “needle, large needle”; verb from the noun
Explanation
To stab is to thrust or jab something sharp, the way you stab your sandwich with a toothpick or the way Brutus (and others) stab Julius Caesar in Shakespeare's play. You can stab at the soil in your garden with a trowel or stab the steak on your plate with a fork. You might then experience a stab (or sharp feeling) of regret, wondering if you should become a vegetarian. When you "take a stab at something," you attempt it: "I decided to take a stab at opera singing." Stab comes from the Scottish stob, "to pierce."
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.
It became a viral sensation, spurring countless inspired products from Crumbl Cookies to Shake Shack desserts as well as major chocolate brands like Lindt and Godiva taking their own stab at the pistachio-filled confection.
From Salon • May 6, 2026
And let’s not forget John Mulaney’s stab at late-night experiment with the live series “Everybody’s in L.A.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2026
The BBC joined a team from the SFO as they put on stab vests and raided a company office at a business park in Cannock.
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
“A diary is an assassin’s cloak which we wear when we stab a comrade in the back with a pen,” wrote William Soutar, a Scottish poet and diarist, in 1934.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 6, 2026
Aru felt a flush of pride in the same instant that she felt a stab of misgiving.
From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi
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.
