nobbling

verb

present participle of nobble, British slang
1
as in cheating
to rob by the use of trickery or threats an old scam that's been used for years to nobble unsuspecting London tourists

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in grabbing
to take physical control or possession of (something) suddenly or forcibly a London bobby nobbled the pickpocket just as he was about to make off with the tourist's watch

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for nobbling
  1. cheating
  2. grabbing
  3. squeezing
  4. catching
  5. plucking
  6. snatching
  7. stinging
  8. seizing
Verb
  • The company remains one of the world’s largest automakers and carries the legacy of Dieselgate, the emissions-cheating scandal that cost it billions of dollars in fines, settlements and other penalties.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2026
  • At the same time, as families pour more resources into preparing young people for the exams, frequent cheating scandals and test cancellations can make their investment moot.
    — Aakash Hassan, Christian Science Monitor, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of cheating
Verb
  • The catalyst was a headline-grabbing second-quarter loss of $154 million that likely sent trading algorithms to hit the sell button.
    — Harvey Stober, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Lopez then attacked Hager, grabbing his holster, and the two men fought over the deputy’s service weapon, according to the arrest report.
    — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of grabbing
Verb
  • Marris was aghast, squeezing the sides of her phone to capture what was on the screen.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2026
  • The level of boredom Pugh brought to Kate making her older client orgasm by squeezing his nipples really sold her approach to the work.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of squeezing
Verb
  • Her complexion was lit-from-within radiant, with the warm pink pigment catching the light across the tops of her cheekbones.
    — Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 3 Oct. 2026
  • In 134 career games, Stewart rushed for 7,335 yards and 51 touchdowns while catching 162 passes for 1,295 yards and seven touchdowns.
    — Ryan Canfield OutKick, FOXNews.com, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of catching
Verb
  • LLMs are great at finding blowups that exist—at searching the infinite landscape of fluid scenarios and plucking out the precise situation that breaks the equations.
    — Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 21 Sep. 2026
  • Fortunately, many dahlia insect problems in September can be solved by walking through the garden in the morning and plucking the offending insects off the plants by hand, then dropping them into a container of soapy water.
    — Andy Wilcox, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of plucking
Verb
  • Not just college kids, but Others cheering for Texas’ football team and snatching up Texas’ degrees.
    — Candace Buckner, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • London — Images of masked men riding along London's streets on mopeds or electric bikes and snatching phones straight out of the hand of unsuspecting tourists and locals have gone viral in recent years.
    — Emmet Lyons, CBS News, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of snatching
Verb
  • As of today, with that $7 million ticking fee to WBD shareholders kicking in October 1 and Ellison’s leaked threat to pull up HQ stakes outta the Golden State still stinging, the deal still sits in legal limbo.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 28 Sep. 2026
  • And in the Northwest, unseasonably warm temperatures combined with drier fall conditions may extend ant and stinging insect activity.
    — Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of stinging
Verb
  • Troop movements over the past couple of weeks indicate the group is concentrating on seizing the southwestern highlands, which could then open the way for a push toward the government’s capital, Aden.
    — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Counsel argued that seizing the ballots was necessary to preserve potential evidence before statutory destruction deadlines and to compare the total number of ballots with official vote records.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of seizing
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.

Browse Nearby Words

nobbles
nobbling
nobby
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Nobbling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nobbling. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of regimen

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All