dab hand

noun

Definition of dab handnext
chiefly British
as in expert
a person with a high level of knowledge or skill in a field a British mystery writer who's an undisputed dab hand at building suspense

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of dab hand The actor and director remains a dab hand at occasion dressing. — Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 13 Sep. 2025 All of which curious George, a dab hand at psychological manipulation, coaxes along with the gentlest of nudges. — Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 12 Mar. 2025 Van Norden, a dab hand with Shakespeare, is a natural for Shaw. — Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024 Zach is a dab hand at herbal knockout potions and the occasional amateur amputation, and there’s a scene featuring the latter in which Wheatley indulges his twin tastes for deadpan comedy and head-on gross-outs to the extreme. — BostonGlobe.com, 14 Apr. 2021 In addition to the outfits of the characters in her famous self-portraits, American artist Cindy Sherman is also a dab hand at finds for herself. — Lily Templeton, WWD, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dab hand
  1. expert
  2. master
  3. scholar
  4. adept
  5. wizard
  6. artist
  7. virtuoso
  8. guru
Noun
  • The high number is likely boosted by unusually warm water and the presence of an El Niño weather phenomenon with potentially historic rain for California, experts have said.
    — Dennis Romero, NBC news, 6 Sep. 2026
  • The page says the funds will be used only for legal expenses, including filings, transcripts, investigators and experts.
    — Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of expert
Noun
  • Braking performance comes courtesy of Gale Speed calipers, a Kustom Tech master cylinder, and custom in-house caliper brackets.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The Illusion Of 'Clean' Data Over the past decade, companies have poured enormous effort into data quality, governance frameworks, master data initiatives and cloud migrations.
    — Kevin Campbell, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of master
Noun
  • Margot has been absorbed with a new idea she’s discovered in her work and has even reached out to a scholar at NASA to discuss it.
    — Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2026
  • As scholars now know, Capa’s early oeuvre encompassed works by both him and Taro.
    — Alissa Simon, Variety, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of scholar
Noun
  • Still, the question of what Ebel was doing with his adepts swept through Prussia, dominating the newspapers that had only recently begun to emerge from their eighteenth-century chronicling of obligations to a more modern publicizing role.
    — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Lest things get predictable, Tasjan’s adept at letting the music battle with the lyrics in a way that hints at how any experience is far more complex than we are led to believe.
    — Marissa R. Moss, Rolling Stone, 17 July 2026
Definition of adept
Noun
  • Newcomer Dominic McLaughlin stars as Harry Potter, the 11-year old wizard previously brought to life by Daniel Radcliffe.
    — Jordan Moreau, Variety, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Harry must find the courage to prove himself against the darkest wizard of all.
    — Brendan Morrow, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of wizard
Noun
  • Giannetos is the artist behind Amal’s covetable hair, who crafted more boho brunette shades of caramel-brown and deft, light layers for the lawyer and humanitarian this summer.
    — Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Bad Bunny and several other artists scored a major win in a copyright lawsuit against them, with a federal judge reversing a previous decision that allowed the case to proceed toward trial.
    — Liza Esquibias, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of artist
Noun
  • Stomp-and-holler virtuoso Noah Kahan had to cancel his July appearance at Citi Field when storm clouds threatened.
    — Matthew Schneier, Curbed, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Roy Clark could show up at Felix and Oscar’s New York apartment in The Odd Couple to demonstrate his virtuoso pickin’ skills and be summoned to Burbank to sub in for Johnny Carson as a guest host of The Tonight Show.
    — David Kamp, HollywoodReporter, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of virtuoso
Noun
  • Longtime rankings guru Loren Maxwell figured out a way to create high school football schedules with maximum competitive matchups and minimized travel … and then applied it to all 413 GHSA schools.
    — Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 4 Sep. 2026
  • This was the Jack Kornfield, the mindfulness guru who wrote A Path With Heart, the book that had launched Britton’s journey into Buddhism.
    — Olga Khazan, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of guru

Browse Nearby Words

dabbling
dab hand
dab hands
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dab hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dab%20hand. Accessed 9 Sep. 2026.

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