How to Use jab in a Sentence

jab

1 of 2 verb
  • The needle jabbed his arm.
  • The needle jabbed into his arm.
  • He jabbed at the other player with his hockey stick.
  • The reps jabbed their ballpoint pens at my heels and scratched notes on clipboards.
    — Ligaya Mishan, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2024
  • Easy to jab it once, twice, three times into a dark raincoat-clad back.
    — Andrew Liptak, The Verge, 8 Dec. 2018
  • Just jabbing people in the eye with a stick for the pleasure of it.
    — Elizabeth Kaye Cook august 6, Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2025
  • Zingano jabbed her opponent for taking a break from the sport.
    — Brian Martin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Oct. 2023
  • None of this has stopped people from jabbing things into their ears.
    — Caroline Mimbs Nyce, The Atlantic, 3 Jan. 2024
  • Kaaz said he was sprayed with pepper spray and jabbed with a police baton.
    — Sean Rossman, USA TODAY, 18 Jan. 2018
  • Low trees jabbed out at every angle, ripping his thin clothes to shreds.
    — David Reamer, Anchorage Daily News, 5 June 2023
  • Daniel yells after jabbing his net into the bank.
    — Wesley Bruer, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Keep it gentle and subtle, and try not to jab your tongue in your partner's mouth.
    — Carolyn Twersky, Seventeen, 11 May 2023
  • Friendly jabs about who can’t guard who or whose team would outduel whose flood the text thread.
    — Sam Cohn, Baltimore Sun, 18 Jan. 2024
  • The bay was only seven feet deep at that spot, so the mast jabbed into the mud and snapped in two.
    — Brian Schutmaat, Smithsonian, 25 Apr. 2015
  • The bay was only seven feet deep at that spot, so the mast jabbed into the mud and snapped in two.
    — Brian Schutmaat, Smithsonian, 29 June 2017
  • Maintain eye contact with the shark and use a hard object or your hands to jab the nose, gills, and eyes.
    — Jennifer Earl, CBS News, 5 July 2023
  • Glenn sized up the sylphlike woman, who had pink hair and was gamely jabbing at the air.
    — David Kortava, The New Yorker, 11 May 2018
  • Boots are rinsed free of sand and hung to dry atop the hickory handles of peaveys jabbed into logs.
    — Popular Mechanics Editors, Popular Mechanics, 16 Feb. 2019
  • Two of the points on the rear treble hook were jabbed deeply into the flesh on the outside of the pike’s mouth.
    — Jack G. Mell, Outdoor Life, 2 July 2026
  • The German comes out fast, jabbing and punching.
    — Heather Abbott, CBS News, 17 Nov. 2025
  • Gunn starts jabbing his fingers into Corenswet’s chest.
    — Adam B. Vary, Variety, 15 Aug. 2025
  • Winkler took Waddell behind the door he was meant to burst out from and started to jab him.
    — Victoria Edel, PEOPLE, 25 Sep. 2025
  • Haggard jabs Baird over mailers The race is already tense.
    — Kayla Dwyer, IndyStar, 13 Aug. 2025
  • In the first round, the two boys jabbed with their elbows and fired their knees like pistons into the other’s stomach.
    — Shashank Bengalistaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 30 July 2019
  • The piece jabs at the toxic nature of machismo while scrambling the boundaries of gender.
    — Carolina A. Miranda, Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2024
  • But the 6-foot-6 Swede jabbed his stick at the puck, knocking it away into the left corner.
    — Ryan Ford, Detroit Free Press, 25 Mar. 2023
  • To their right, a woman raised her hand, jabbing her index finger forward and shouting.
    — Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2025
  • The suspect lunged, jabbed and threatened to harm the employee with the knife before fleeing.
    — Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, 9 June 2018
  • The sister had a puncture wound on the side of her cheek consistent with being jabbed with a fork, the complaint said.
    — Gina Martinez, CBS News, 20 Apr. 2023
  • Johnson jabs his finger into the preset button to change the station.
    — Kent Babb, chicagotribune.com, 13 Dec. 2017

jab

2 of 2 noun
  • She gave him a jab in the ribs.
  • He threw a right jab to his opponent's body.
  • But what will a small jab do to you?
    — Jody Dushay, STAT, 29 May 2026
  • Some of his jabs seemed a bit forced and stagy.
    — Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2026
  • The man dodged the jab and pulled out his phone to record.
    — Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 16 Jan. 2026
  • The day had begun with a jab in the ribs.
    — Beren Cross, New York Times, 25 May 2026
  • There’s always time for one more jab.
    — Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 1 May 2026
  • Barkley didn’t respond to the jab on air.
    — Devon Henderson, New York Times, 10 May 2026
  • The rat tail, his little jabs here and there.
    — Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 2 Oct. 2025
  • Just look at the jabs Amanda makes.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 25 Mar. 2026
  • Rousey took her jab at Rogan there.
    — Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 3 Nov. 2025
  • DiCaprio took the jab in stride.
    — Antonia Blyth, Deadline, 11 Jan. 2026
  • But her right jab at her kickboxing gym?
    — Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 27 Jan. 2026
  • Later in the episode, Tatum took a few jabs at his past work.
    — Jack Dunn, Variety, 5 Oct. 2025
  • Weight-loss jabs are the latest craze for shedding a few pounds.
    — Nadine Wehida, Scientific American, 25 June 2026
  • Trump told reporters at the time, in what was widely seen as a veiled jab.
    — Rebecca Schneid, Time, 18 Aug. 2025
  • Spence’s game plan was to land body shots and use his reach advantage with a jab.
    — Calvin Watkins, Dallas News, 30 July 2023
  • Trump has taken his own jabs at Harry.
    — Stylecaster Editors, StyleCaster, 23 Apr. 2026
  • That last jab now reads as more of a promise than a prediction.
    — Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2025
  • That's good for any situation where a jab saw would come in handy.
    — Brittany Vincent, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Sep. 2023
  • Ramos rallied and scored with some jabs before the round ended.
    — José M. Romero, The Arizona Republic, 25 Mar. 2023
  • Mahomes grinned and added a good-natured jab at his teammate.
    — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 14 Aug. 2025
  • Glaser said, with the audience laughing at the jab.
    — Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 28 Jan. 2026
  • Glaser said, with the audience laughing at the jab.
    — Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Jan. 2026
  • These are not mere rhetorical jabs and insults.
    — Douglas Rediker, Foreign Affairs, 17 Dec. 2025
  • Then, Stacey delivered one last jab.
    — Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 10 Oct. 2025
  • Cam’ron is just as vocal and willing to throw jabs as Dame Dash.
    — Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 4 Sep. 2025
  • Hand-ringing about supply chains (and many of the jabs at China)?
    — Courtney Fingar, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024
  • By the time training camp rolled around, both sides were taking jabs at the other in the media.
    — Kevin McCormick, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Aug. 2025
  • Khloé and Kris swapped places, while Kim and Kourtney paired up to trade jabs.
    — Andrea Wurzburger, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jab.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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