nab

nab — verb

1. informal — to seize a person who has done something illegal, or to quickly take

1.verbtransitiveB1
Definition

informal — to seize a person who has done something illegal, or to quickly take an item before anyone else can get it

Example

Police nabbed the thief as he tried to climb out of a window.

nab + person (criminal caught by police)

Hari nabbed the last piece of cake before anyone else could reach it.

nab + thing (food, taken quickly)

Common collocations
  • nab a thief
  • nab a suspect
  • nab a seat
  • nab a bargain
  • nab the last one
  • nab a prize
  • nab by police
Synonyms
  • catch

    neutral and broader; 'nab' is more informal and sudden

  • capture

    more formal and dramatic, often used for animals or enemies

  • grab

    focuses on quick physical taking of an object, not a person

  • pinch

    British slang for stealing; narrower and more regional

Antonyms
  • release

    opposite of catching — letting someone go

  • miss

    opposite of grabbing — failing to take an opportunity

Grammar Patterns

nab + person (criminal, suspect, thief)

nab + thing (food, seat, prize)

Usage Note

Common in journalism and everyday speech, but not in formal legal writing — a court document would use "arrest" or "apprehend" instead. Subject is most often police or security forces when the object is a person.

Common Mistakes

The police napped the robber yesterday.
The police nabbed the robber yesterday.
'nab' has a -b not -p, and the past tense is 'nabbed' (double b).
The court nabbed him for fraud.
The court found him guilty of fraud.
'nab' is for catching criminals in the act; courts convict and sentence, they do not 'nab'.

Word family

  • nabber
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

"Nab", "catch", "capture", "grab", and "arrest" all involve taking hold of something, but they differ in register and scope. "Nab" is informal and suggests a quick, opportunistic act — a police officer nabbing a pickpocket, or a person nabbing the last cookie. "Catch" is the neutral, all-purpose term: you can catch a ball, a criminal, or a cold. "Capture" is more formal and dramatic, implying effort or pursuit — animals and enemy soldiers are captured, not nabbed. "Grab" focuses on the physical speed of taking an object (a seat, a piece of food), not a person. "Arrest" is the formal legal term for taking someone into custody by authority of law — you cannot arrest a cookie. In a police report you would write "the suspect was arrested"; in a casual news article you might say "police nabbed the suspect."

catch ↗capture ↗grab ↗arrest ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

  • finally nab
  • quickly nab
  • nab red-handed

Phrases

  • nab a criminal
  • nab a bargain
  • nab a seat

Prepositions

  • nab by (police)
  • nab for (theft, burglary)

Etymology

Scandinavian (prob. nappa, to seize)English slang

"Nab" first appeared in English in the late 1600s as slang meaning "to catch a thief." It probably comes from an older slang word "nob" or "nab" meaning "head," with the idea of grabbing someone by the head. A related Scandinavian word "nappa" (to catch, to seize) may also have influenced it. By the 1800s, the word had broadened from catching criminals to snatching any opportunity or object quickly.