grab1

[grab] /græb/
verb (used with object), grabbed, grabbing.
1.
to seize suddenly or quickly; snatch; clutch:
He grabbed me by the collar.
2.
to take illegal possession of; seize forcibly or unscrupulously:
to grab land.
3.
to obtain and consume quickly:
Let's grab a sandwich before going to the movie.
4.
Slang.
  1. to cause a reaction in; affect:
    How does my idea grab you?
  2. to arouse the interest or excitement of:
    The book was O.K., but it just didn't grab me.
verb (used without object), grabbed, grabbing.
5.
to make a grasping or clutching motion (usually followed by at):
He grabbed frantically at the life preserver.
6.
(of brakes, a clutch, etc.) to take hold suddenly or with a jolting motion; bind.
noun
7.
a sudden, quick grasp or snatch:
to make a grab at something.
8.
seizure or acquisition by violent or unscrupulous means.
9.
something that is grabbed.
10.
a mechanical device for gripping objects.
11.
the capacity to hold or adhere:
The glue was so old it had lost its grab.
Idioms
12.
up for grabs, Informal. available to anyone willing to expend the energy to get it:
The Republican nomination for mayor was up for grabs.
Origin
1580-90; cognate with Middle Dutch, Middle Low German grabben, Swedish grabba
Related forms
grabbable, adjective
ungrabbing, adjective
Synonyms
1. grasp, grip, catch.

grab2

[grab] /græb/
noun
1.
an Oriental ship having two or three masts with a square rig.
Origin
1670-80; < Arabic ghurāb literally, raven
Examples from the web for grab
  • For years, high-school students who wanted information on a college could always grab a brochure from the counselor's office.
  • Point out how newscasters may play on a sense of fear for personal safety, ambiguity, or money issues to grab people's attention.
  • Crucial advice for future banding participants: before you grab the bird's body, be sure your partner has grabbed the head.
  • If it should rain, slip into a stone-and-log shelter, or grab a fireside seat in the estate house and have tea.
  • Once the site has loaded grab that tab and drag it down to the taskbar.
  • grab a coloring book and box of crayons for a few minutes of coloring inside or outside the lines.
  • The intention was to get close, fire a projectile into the surface and grab some of the ensuing dust.
  • We moved around the tent, pushing through the crowd to grab samples for each other.
  • While you're picking up the tomatoes, grab some corn for grilling.
  • Don't grab the arms of the chair or slide backward in it.
British Dictionary definitions for grab

grab

/ɡræb/
verb grabs, grabbing, grabbed
1.
to seize hold of (something)
2.
(transitive) to seize illegally or unscrupulously
3.
(transitive) to arrest; catch
4.
(intransitive) (of a brake or clutch in a vehicle) to grip and release intermittently causing juddering
5.
(transitive) (informal) to catch the attention or interest of; impress
noun
6.
the act or an instance of grabbing
7.
a mechanical device for gripping objects, esp the hinged jaws of a mechanical excavator
8.
something that is grabbed
9.
(informal) up for grabs, available to be bought, claimed, or won
Derived Forms
grabber, noun
Word Origin
C16: probably from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch grabben; related to Swedish grabba, Sanskrit grbhnāti he seizes
Word Origin and History for grab
v.

1580s, from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German grabben "to grab," from Proto-Germanic *grab (cf. Old English græppian "to seize," Old Saxon garva, Old High German garba "sheaf," literally "that which is gathered up together"), from PIE *ghrebh- "to seize, reach" (cf. Sanskrit grbhnati "seizes," Old Persian grab- "seize" as possession or prisoner, Old Church Slavonic grabiti "to seize, rob," Lithuanian grebiu "to rake"). Sense of "to get by unscrupulous methods" reinforced by grab game, a kind of swindle, attested from 1846. Related: Grabbed; grabbing.

n.

1777, "thing grabbed;" 1824, "act of grabbing," from grab (v.). Up for grabs attested from 1945 in jive talk.

Slang definitions & phrases for grab

grab

noun

An arrest; bust, pinch: We will get credit for the grab, and we will also profit/ The only thing worse than no grab is a bad grab (1753+ Police)

verb

To seize the admiration or attention of; impress: How does that grab you?/ to reflect on a whole lot of things that had been grabbing me (1966+)


Idioms and Phrases with grab

grab

In addition to the idiom beginning with
grab
also see: