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Added 9 October 2026

nab

/næb/ verb

verb Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about nab at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Tag the base runner to get him out.
Take into custody.
the police nabbed the suspected criminals
Seize suddenly.

Origin

From dialectal nap (“to seize, lay hold of”), probably of North Germanic origin, from Old Swedish nappa (“to pluck, pinch”). Related to Danish nappe (“to tweak, snatch at, catch, seize”), Swedish nappa (“to take, grab, pinch”), Norwegian Bokmål nappe (“to grab, snatch, pluck, yank”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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