noun General Slang

Nab

/næb/ · noun · slang

The head — and a 'nab-cheat' was a hat; to nab also meant to seize or arrest.

0

Definitions

1

By extension, to grab or steal a thing quickly — the verb survives in plain modern English.

“Nab the purse and run; don't stand gawping.”
by community
0
2

As a verb, to seize, catch or arrest; to nab a man was to take him, often by the law.

“The watch nabbed him as he climbed out the casement.”
by community
0
3

The head, in the canting sense; a 'nab-cheat' or 'nabchet' was the hat that covered it.

“He took a knock on the nab that laid him flat in the kennel.”
by community
0

Nab In A Sentence

Pull your nab-cheat low so the watch can't mark your face.
They nabbed the foin red-handed in the press of the crowd.
One blow to the nab and the cully went down without a sound.

Origin & Usage

Recorded in canting glossaries from the 17th century, including B.E. (1699) and Grose (1785). 'Nab' for head and 'nab-cheat' for hat are listed there; the verb 'to nab' (seize) became general English. The two senses likely share the idea of taking by the head.

Variants nab-cheatnabchetnob
Tags #thieves-cant#cant#historical#british#slang

People Also Ask

What does nab mean in thieves' cant?

The head — and a 'nab-cheat' was a hat. As a verb, to nab meant to seize, catch or arrest.

Is nab still used today?

Yes — the verb 'to nab', meaning to grab or arrest, passed from cant into everyday English.

What is a nab-cheat?

A hat — 'cheat' was a cant suffix for a thing, so a nab-cheat was the head-thing, the hat.

Comments 0