nab

verb

ˈnab 

nabbed; nabbing

transitive verb

1

: to catch or seize in arrest : apprehend

2

: to seize suddenly

Synonyms of nab

• arrest
• seize
• grab
• apprehend
• detain

Examples of nab in a Sentence

We nabbed seats in the front row of the theater.

the officer nabbed the purse snatcher before he could escape

Recent Examples on the Web

The Giants would’ve had a shot at nabbing Arozarena at second, but shortstop Willy Adames was late covering the bag and Arozarena dove safely into second without a throw. — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 19 July 2026

Amaya, the catcher, then threw it to third baseman Bregman to nab Josh Bell, who had taken a big turn. — Andy Martinez, Chicago Tribune, 18 July 2026

Some of these companies, including Thinking Machines, have nabbed substantial sums from investors before releasing any products. — Shirin Ghaffary, Fortune, 15 July 2026

The distributor extended its streak of Palme d’Or pick-ups by nabbing Cristian Mungiu’s Fjord. — Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 15 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

perhaps alteration of English dialect nap

First Known Use

1686, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for nab

• ab
• cab
• crab
• dab
• drab
• fab
• gab
• grab
• jab
• lab
• mab
• rab

Kids Definition

nab

verb

ˈnab 

nabbed; nabbing

1

: to seize and take into custody : arrest

2

: to seize suddenly

especially : steal entry 1 sense 2a