dabs 1 of 3

noun (1)

plural of dab
1
as in jabs
a quick thrust one more quick dab of the brush and he would be finished with his painting

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in splashes
a very small amount she added a dab of sesame oil to the dressing before pouring it on the salad

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in swipes
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument a bear can knock a man down with a simple dab of his paw

Synonyms & Similar Words

dabs

2 of 3

noun (2)

plural of dab, chiefly British
as in experts
a person with a high level of knowledge or skill in a field a dab at finding unappreciated collectibles and reselling them at a considerable profit

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

dabs

3 of 3

verb

present tense third-person singular of dab
1
as in smears

Related Words

Dissimilar Words
2
as in taps

Related Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of dabs
Noun
There’s heat to be found in bites with salsa, dabs of hot sauce and, to a lesser degree, the seasoning of the chicken. — Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 19 Aug. 2026 Smoking was the most common mode of marijuana use, followed by edibles, vaping, dabs, waxes and concentrates, the study found. — Greta Cross, USA Today, 3 Aug. 2026 The final version mostly holds itself together, though the front bezel requires either some electrical tape or a couple dabs of superglue to stay attached. — Lee Hutchinson, ArsTechnica, 23 July 2026 Every page had its own illustration in an airy line-drawing style, with dabs of pastel color. — Neil J. Rubenking, PC Magazine, 24 June 2026 The component parts include herself, a fashionable, high-ish brow, and maybe trashy auteur (Abel Ferrara, Olivier Assayas, Catherine Breillat, her own dad), a strong genre element, and dabs of very deliberate provocation. — David Katz, IndieWire, 20 May 2026 Tokyo Stylez, Cardi’s hairstylist, brushes out a sleek brown hairpiece, and Erika la’ pearl, her makeup artist, dabs at Cardi’s face while the rapper scrolls through her phone, controlling the music. — Jazmine Hughes, Allure, 24 Mar. 2026 Among the other standouts are Klimt’s Blooming Meadow (1908)—a sea of green grass and trees flecked with blue, yellow, and pink dabs of wildflowers—and six figurative bronzes by Matisse. — Julie Belcove, Robb Report, 26 Oct. 2025 The 132 rooms have welcome dabs of color—royal blue desk chairs and headboards and pink and white curtains. — Chloe Arrojado, AFAR Media, 26 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dabs
  1. jabs
  2. splashes
  3. swipes
  4. experts
  5. smears
  6. taps
  7. punches
  8. sprinklings
Noun
  • With blistering satirical slants and a steady mix of acidic jabs at middle-class life, Darko should be boffo among the teen and young adults segment as well as those viewers still plugged into a sophomoric self-identity.
    — Duane Byrge, HollywoodReporter, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Trump also defended himself against Maher’s jabs at his low approval ratings by wildly mischaracterizing CNN’s reporting.
    — Brian Stelter, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of jabs
Noun
  • The apron is built to take a beating—oils and rogue splashes barely register, practically rolling right off the surface.
    — Alaina Chou, Bon Appetit Magazine, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Jazz fusion keyboardist George Duke, however, plays wild splashes of melody on an electric piano in the empty spaces between Waits’s lines.
    — Al Shipley, SPIN, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of splashes
Noun
  • Behind the metallic Ray-Ban logo on the right temple is a touch surface for taps and swipes to accept calls and control audio playback.
    — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 13 Oct. 2026
  • On social media, the campaign has highlighted events such as Begich’s visit to the Alaska State Fair and recently has taken swipes at Hill.
    — Becky Bohrer, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of swipes
Noun
  • But experts caution that escalating pressure does not necessarily mean Tehran will back down.
    — Lauren Morganbesser, semafor.com, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Oil producers have found ways to keep crude flowing, experts say, but at a mounting cost.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of experts
Verb
  • Darker smears around the crater’s rim contain surface rocks and lunar dust called regolith previously altered by solar winds, micrometeorites, and cosmic radiation over an extended period of time.
    — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Aug. 2026
  • The atmosphere works on them a little bit harder and reduces their strength and smears them a little bit more.
    — Jacopo Prisco, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of smears
Verb
  • For general-purpose use, Microsoft already taps its own central processing units as well as silicon from Intel and AMD.
    — Jordan Novet, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2026
  • An InStyle editor taps a celebrity nail artist to round up 10 pretty colors worth bookmarking this season.
    — Amanda Le, InStyle, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of taps
Noun
  • And a fair fight is not just two fighters throwing the same punches at each other for 50 years.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026
  • In the opposite corner of the ring, Evloev is a freestyle fighter, getting a bunch of different kicks and punches to give him the edge.
    — OutKick, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of punches
Noun
  • My grandmother’s version typically called just for the addition of generous sprinklings of Lawry’s garlic salt and black pepper—and that’s it.
    — Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 12 June 2026
Definition of sprinklings

Browse Nearby Words

dab hands
dabs
dacha
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Cite this Entry

“Dabs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dabs. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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