# stab

Pronunciation: say "STAB" /stæb/

## Verb

1. To drive a weapon or tool, usually a pointed one and most often a knife or dagger, into someone so as to pierce or wound them.
   - Simple: To hurt someone by pushing a knife or other sharp object into them.
   - _The victim said a stranger stabbed him outside the bar._
   - _Guards train to disarm anyone who tries to stab a prisoner._
5. To thrust something forward in a sharp, stabbing motion.
   - Simple: To push something pointed quickly forward with a sharp, jabbing move.
   - _She stabbed her pen at the chart to mark the error._
   - _Coaches often stab a finger toward the field when correcting players._
6. To hit out recklessly with the tip of a pointed object, such as a weapon or finger, without careful aim.
   - Simple: To hit out wildly with the pointed end of something, often missing.
   - _He stabbed at the dartboard wildly, missing every time._
   - _Frustrated commuters stab at the broken touchscreen until it responds._
7. To cause a sudden, sharp, piercing sensation of pain.
   - Simple: To give a sudden, sharp feeling of pain.
   - _A migraine stabbed behind her left eye all afternoon._
   - _Hunger pangs stab at him whenever he skips breakfast._
9. To injure someone secretly through malicious lies or slander.
   - Simple: To harm someone in a hidden way by telling lies about them.
   - _Colleagues who stab you with whispered rumors are the hardest to confront._
   - _He stabbed his business partner with a quiet campaign of slander._
12. To pierce folded sheets near their back edges so thread or wire can pass through to bind them.
   - Simple: To make small holes through folded paper near the spine so thread or wire can pass through.
   - _Workers stab the folded sheets along the spine before threading the wire._
   - _She stabbed the gathered leaves close to the back edge._
13. To roughen a brick wall with a pick so that plaster will hold to its surface.
   - Simple: To scratch up a brick wall with a pointed tool so plaster will stick to it.
   - _Masons stab the brickwork to give the plaster something to grip._
   - _He stabbed the wall thoroughly before the first coat went on._
14. In drilling and pipework, to steer the end of a length of pipe into a coupling while the two are being joined.
   - Simple: To carefully line up the end of a pipe and feed it into its connector.
   - _The floor hands stab the pipe into the box and start the threads by hand._
   - _He stabbed the joint carefully to avoid damaging the threads._

## Noun

2. A single thrusting motion made with a pointed object.
   - Simple: A quick push or thrust into something with a pointed object.
   - _With one quick stab, she popped the bubble wrap._
   - _The fencer scored with a sharp stab to the chest._
3. A wound produced by piercing with a pointed weapon or tool.
   - Simple: A cut or hole in the body made by a knife or other sharp object.
   - _The coroner counted three stabs to the chest._
   - _A single stab had punctured the lung._
4. An attempt at doing or solving something. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: A try at doing something, especially when you are not sure you can do it.
   - _She made a stab at the trivia question but got it wrong._
   - _His first stab at baking bread turned out surprisingly well._
8. A sharp, sudden pain inflicted on a person's feelings.
   - Simple: A sharp, sudden hurt to someone's feelings.
   - _A stab of regret kept her awake that night._
   - _He felt a sudden stab of fear while reading the letter._
10. Pointed, wounding criticism aimed at a person or their work.
   - Simple: A sharp, hurtful comment meant to criticize someone.
   - _The reviewer's stab at the novel struck many readers as needlessly cruel._
   - _He brushed off the political stabs aimed at his record._
11. A single short, sharp chord that adds dramatic impact to a piece of music.
   - Simple: A short, sharp chord that adds a sudden burst of drama to music.
   - _The composer dropped a brass stab right as the villain appeared._
   - _Sudden orchestral stabs punctuated the chase scene._
15. A bacterial culture grown by pushing a needle or wire carrying bacteria into a solid medium such as gelatin.
   - Simple: A bacteria sample grown by poking a needle deep into a solid, jelly-like food.
   - _The technician inoculated a stab to test how the organism grew below the surface._
   - _Several stabs were stored as backups of the original strain._
16. A plane's horizontal or vertical stabilizer: the fixed tail surface that holds it steady. *(slang)*
   - Simple: The fin-like part of a plane's tail that keeps it steady in flight.
   - _The crew chief found a loose bolt on the stab during the walkaround._
   - _Pilots reported heavy buffeting from the damaged stab._
18. Clipping of establishment. Old British trade slang, chiefly printers', for regular weekly employment (on stab). — Clipping of establishment.
   - Simple: Short form of establishment. Old British trade slang for a job on regular weekly pay.

## Adjective

17. Clipping of established. Chiefly British trade slang, especially among printers, for regular salaried work. — Clipping of established.
   - Simple: Short form of established. Old British trade slang for a regular job with fixed pay, not casual work.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–15** — First recorded in Scottish English (compare Scots stob 'a pointed stick or a thrust with a weapon'), from Middle English stabbe 'a stab', probably a variant of Middle English stob or stub 'pointed stick, stake, stump', from Old Norse stobbi. Some suppose it comes from Scottish Gaelic stob 'to prick, prod, thrust', while others think it is from a Scots word.
**Meaning 16** — A clipping of stabilizer (or stabiliser).

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/stab (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).