to nab

Examples

• All

• According to my FBI source, he was nabbed in customs at LAX.

  Swordfish (2001)

• We might nab him if we set up a perimeter.

  The Incredibles (2004)

• Get your gun out, and we'll nab him.

  Bringing Up Baby (1938)

• Come on guys, let's nab that tape.

  The Prankster (2010)

• Will they be able to spot the source of poison and nab the criminal?

  Blog text (3)

• Day in, day out, it's stop this punk, nab that thief.

  Fiction book (1992)

• Justin Timberlake is looking to nab the lead role in the movie "The Last Drop."

  Blog text (17)

• That's where police say they finally nabbed him with a bag still full of bills.

  Blog text (24)

• We actually nabbed two of them outside Covent Garden Opera House, but all of the others got away.

  Fiction book (1990)

• He's quickly nabbed, given a good ole Brooklyn beatdown, then thrown into the rear of the vehicle.

  Fiction book (2000)

Synonyms

C

to catch

vsto nab

∞ 1.0

To take hold of a moving person or thing to stop it

is a sudden capture aimed at preventing escape rather than general holding

A

to arrest

vsto nab

∞ 3.4

To detain someone and take them to the police station

is more about an immediate physical stop than legal procedure

C

to capture

vsto nab

688 2.8

To catch and take control of someone or something after a chase

is a quick seizure focused on stopping someone now

S

to seize

vsto nab

399 3.2

To take control of a place or person quickly, often by force

is a sudden grab meant to stop or put someone under control

B

to bust

vsto nab

• Informal

202 6.1

To enter a place suddenly to arrest people

is a sudden on-the-spot catching action rather than an organised raid

N

to nail

vsto nab

• Informal

185 8.0

To catch someone for a crime, often while they are doing it

is a quick seizure focused on stopping wrongdoing immediately

P

to pick up

vsto nab

• Informal

114 3.9

To take someone to the police because they are suspected of a crime

is a quick, often sudden seizing to stop or detain someone immediately

A

to apprehend

vsto nab

• Formal

111 6.1

To arrest someone and put them in police custody

is usually faster and more about on-the-spot stopping than formal process

C

to collar

vsto nab

21 6.1

To grab someone by the neck or shirt to stop them

is the abrupt taking meant to stop and restrain someone immediately

B

to bustin

vsto nab

• Slang

9.8

To arrest someone, usually by the police

is a sudden grabbing action aimed at stopping someone now

Antonyms

R

to release

∞ 1.8

To let someone or something go free from being held

L

to liberate

202 4.3

Set someone free from prison or unfair control

How Successful

to defeat

704 2.1

to getcha

• Slang

11 9.9

capture

120 3.2

to nab

• Informal

54 5.8

to catch

∞ 1.0

to tag

16 2.0

Surface Forms

Etymology