nab Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb tag the base runner to get him out
  2. verb take into custody
    cop; pick up; apprehend; nail; arrest; collar.
    • the police nabbed the suspected criminals
  3. verb seize suddenly

WordNet

Nab noun
Etymology
Cf. Knap, Knop, Knob.
Definitions
  1. The summit of an eminence. Prov. Eng. Halliwell.
  2. (Firearms) The cock of a gunlock. Knight.
  3. (Locksmithing) The keeper, or box into which the lock is shot. Knight.
Nab transitive verb
Etymology
Dan nappe, or Sw. nappa.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Nabbed ; present participle & verbal noun Nabbing
Definitions
  1. To catch or seize suddenly or unexpectedly. Colloq. Smollett.

Webster 1913