dabs 1 of 3

noun (1)

plural of dab
1
as in jabs
a quick thrust one more quick dab of the brush and he would be finished with his painting

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in splashes
a very small amount she added a dab of sesame oil to the dressing before pouring it on the salad

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in swipes
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument a bear can knock a man down with a simple dab of his paw

Synonyms & Similar Words

dabs

2 of 3

noun (2)

plural of dab, chiefly British
as in experts
a person with a high level of knowledge or skill in a field a dab at finding unappreciated collectibles and reselling them at a considerable profit

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

dabs

3 of 3

verb

present tense third-person singular of dab
1
as in smears

Related Words

Dissimilar Words
2
as in taps

Related Words

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 dabs
Noun
There’s heat to be found in bites with salsa, dabs of hot sauce and, to a lesser degree, the seasoning of the chicken. — Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 19 Aug. 2026 Smoking was the most common mode of marijuana use, followed by edibles, vaping, dabs, waxes and concentrates, the study found. — Greta Cross, USA Today, 3 Aug. 2026 The final version mostly holds itself together, though the front bezel requires either some electrical tape or a couple dabs of superglue to stay attached. — Lee Hutchinson, ArsTechnica, 23 July 2026 Every page had its own illustration in an airy line-drawing style, with dabs of pastel color. — Neil J. Rubenking, PC Magazine, 24 June 2026 The component parts include herself, a fashionable, high-ish brow, and maybe trashy auteur (Abel Ferrara, Olivier Assayas, Catherine Breillat, her own dad), a strong genre element, and dabs of very deliberate provocation. — David Katz, IndieWire, 20 May 2026 Tokyo Stylez, Cardi’s hairstylist, brushes out a sleek brown hairpiece, and Erika la’ pearl, her makeup artist, dabs at Cardi’s face while the rapper scrolls through her phone, controlling the music. — Jazmine Hughes, Allure, 24 Mar. 2026 Among the other standouts are Klimt’s Blooming Meadow (1908)—a sea of green grass and trees flecked with blue, yellow, and pink dabs of wildflowers—and six figurative bronzes by Matisse. — Julie Belcove, Robb Report, 26 Oct. 2025 The 132 rooms have welcome dabs of color—royal blue desk chairs and headboards and pink and white curtains. — Chloe Arrojado, AFAR Media, 26 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dabs
  1. jabs
  2. splashes
  3. swipes
  4. experts
  5. smears
  6. taps
  7. punches
  8. sprinklings
Noun
  • Tia, on her end, handled the ambush skillfully, parrying jabs without raising her voice to prevent Wendy from having any opening to feign victimization.
    — Shamira Ibrahim, Vulture, 2 Nov. 2026
  • The final sprint to Tuesday's midterm elections has kicked up a flurry of headlines about attack ads slung by candidates and verbal jabs thrown by current and former occupants of the White House.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of jabs
Noun
  • Picture windows dominate the 30 ample rooms, which are pleasingly clad in unfinished wood and shocking splashes of lime.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Nov. 2026
  • In the distance was a bronze statue of Louis XIV on a rearing horse in the majestic Place des Victoires, its stone pedestal stained by protesters’ splashes of red paint.
    — Michael Finnegan, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of splashes
Noun
  • Chastain rimmed her green-blue eyes with black kohl and long lashes, while strategically placed swipes of highlight along her nose tied the actress’ beauty together.
    — Arushi Jacob, Footwear News, 6 Nov. 2026
  • The color-changing formula swipes on clear, then adapts to your skin’s pH to reveal a personalized pink hue.
    — Madison San Miguel, Allure, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of swipes
Noun
  • Many experts have recently argued that a key mission — combating climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions — has been failing.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 Nov. 2026
  • Star chefs from across the world flocked to the culinary hotspot for the 50 Best Restaurants 2026, a prestigious awards ceremony that crowns the top restaurants around the globe based on anonymous nominations from over a thousand industry experts.
    — Nathan Tavares, Condé Nast Traveler, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of experts
Verb
  • Darker smears around the crater’s rim contain surface rocks and lunar dust called regolith previously altered by solar winds, micrometeorites, and cosmic radiation over an extended period of time.
    — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Aug. 2026
  • The atmosphere works on them a little bit harder and reduces their strength and smears them a little bit more.
    — Jacopo Prisco, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of smears
Verb
  • For general-purpose use, Microsoft already taps its own central processing units as well as silicon from Intel and AMD.
    — Jordan Novet, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2026
  • An InStyle editor taps a celebrity nail artist to round up 10 pretty colors worth bookmarking this season.
    — Amanda Le, InStyle, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of taps
Noun
  • The flavor excels because each ingredient punches above its weight.
    — Nina Moskowitz, Bon Appetit Magazine, 8 Nov. 2026
  • Once upon a time, Georgia-Florida was an annual heavyweight fight, two proud programs trading punches and championships while their fans traded insults and cocktails in Jacksonville.
    — Mike Bianchi, The Orlando Sentinel, 31 Oct. 2026
Definition of punches
Noun
  • My grandmother’s version typically called just for the addition of generous sprinklings of Lawry’s garlic salt and black pepper—and that’s it.
    — Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 12 June 2026
Definition of sprinklings

Browse Nearby Words

dab hands
dabs
dacha
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Cite this Entry

“Dabs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dabs. Accessed 11 Nov. 2026.

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