nabs

verb

present tense third-person singular of nab
1
as in seizes
to take or keep under one's control by authority of law the officer nabbed the purse snatcher before he could escape

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in grabs
to take physical control or possession of (something) suddenly or forcibly a pickpocket nabbed my wallet

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 nabs The new skating game from Undercoders nabs a 4-star rating from our reviewer. — Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 27 Aug. 2026 The 11 Pro Fold nabs $2,249 from your bank account, which is already pricey, but the Z Fold 8 requires an extra $250 for the same configuration. — Kimberly Gedeon, PC Magazine, 16 Aug. 2026 Simultaneously, Lefty nabs her first career appearance on the Billboard Global Excl. — Hugh McIntyre, Forbes.com, 25 July 2026 Dutch team nabs 17 bikes from KC shop. — Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 12 June 2026 Now, DeLuz just wants to make sure Hilton nabs one of those top two spots, especially after intense sparring with fading Republican candidate Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. — Terry Collins, USA Today, 1 June 2026 Tampa Bay passes up on a few top edge rushers here (Miami’s Akheem Mesidor and Auburn’s Keldric Faulk) because of the depth at the position and instead nabs McCoy before a few other corner-needy teams. — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 23 Apr. 2026 Infielder Chris Hacopian barrels a ball, but Jaquae Stewart nabs it right before the warning track. — Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 17 Mar. 2026 When one pilot nabs a speed record, almost instantly another goes up into the clouds to attempt to top them. — Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 13 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nabs
  1. seizes
  2. grabs
  3. arrests
  4. catches
  5. apprehends
  6. snatches
  7. detains
  8. captures
Verb
  • Sid is smart enough to sniff this out, and the show seizes the opportunity to raise the romantic stakes through an adorably British expression of mutual libidinousness.
    — Scott Tobias, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026
  • That reporting revealed that the state frequently seizes money from legal settlements stemming from medical malpractice, police brutality, workplace injury and other wrongful death lawsuits.
    — Ginny Monk, Hartford Courant, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of seizes
Verb
  • If anyone who is hired to MC one of the largest events in golf grabs a microphone and joins in on ‘f you’ chants directed at a player in the event you're being paid to be a part of, that person is undoubtedly being fired, regardless of gender.
    — Mark Harris OutKick, FOXNews.com, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The suspect runs inside, grabs rolls of lottery tickets, stuffs them into a bag and runs out.
    — Tara Lynch, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of grabs
Verb
  • Keith arrests our thinking, and cons us into suppressing our critical faculties with the same kind of internalized surveillance that philosopher Michel Foucault broke down to describe a prison’s use of the panopticon in Discipline and Punish.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 19 May 2026
  • Devlin throws a punch at Stone when the chief arrests him for drunken driving.
    — Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026
Definition of arrests
Verb
  • Life and social structures in remote river villages are rooted in summer fish camps, where the community catches, processes, and preserves the salmon that feeds them through the winter.
    — Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Participants step or jump off a platform more than 40 feet above the ground, experiencing a brief moment of free fall before the rope system catches them and slowly lowers them to the ground.
    — Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of catches
Verb
  • John Early, as anyone encountering his work soon apprehends, chooses the latter.
    — Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 7 June 2026
  • Though the team immediately apprehends a suspect, the Marshals end up taking criticism from both sides.
    — Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 21 Mar. 2026
Definition of apprehends
Verb
  • In the midst of handing the job over to his son, even as Diego is making a speech about water supplies, hygiene and education, Don Alejandro snatches it back to cheers, clutches his heart and dies.
    — Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026
  • These picks start at $11 and range from a one-piece swimsuit that snatches your waist to an everyday pair of wide-leg jeans and this summer-friendly tank top.
    — Mia Huelsbeck, PEOPLE, 25 June 2026
Definition of snatches
Verb
  • The Midwest Regional Reception Center detains close to 500 fathers, mothers, spouses, cousins and friends on behalf of ICE.
    — Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 18 Aug. 2026
  • The policy guidance applies to agents under Enforcement and Removal Operations, the branch of ICE that detains and ultimately deports undocumented immigrants.
    — Philip Wang, Time, 14 July 2026
Definition of detains
Verb
  • The result is a maximalist record that captures the wide-eyed, everything-at-once optimism of ’90s big beat.
    — Andrew Ryce, Pitchfork, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The video captures the brakes being applied and the car veering left to attempt to swerve around the pedestrian, CHP said.
    — Breaking News, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of captures

Browse Nearby Words

nabobs
nabs
nacreous
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Cite this Entry

“Nabs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nabs. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.

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