1
nab sb
指捉住或逮捕某人。
Police nabbed the thief outside the store.
警察在商店外抓住了小偷。
突然抓住；捉住
先理解核心含义，再看它在真实句子里的用法。
突然抓住；捉住
to seize or catch suddenly
Police nabbed the thief outside the store.
警察在商店外抓住了小偷。
nab
Base
原形
nabs
3rd person
第三人称单数
nabbing
-ing
现在分词
nabbed
Past
过去式
nabbed
Past participle
过去分词
The police often nab thieves near the station.
警察经常在车站附近抓住小偷。
They nabbed the suspect at midnight.
他们在午夜逮捕了嫌疑人。
The detective is nabbing the smuggler now.
侦探正在抓捕走私犯。
常用于口语，指突然抓住、逮捕或抢到；注意拼写变化：nab → nabbed → nabbing。
The police nabbed the thief just as he was leaving the store.
警察在小偷正要离开商店时抓住了他。
Security guards managed to nab the shoplifter before she ran out.
保安设法在那名入店行窃者跑出去之前抓住了她。
The catcher nabbed the runner trying to steal second base.
接球手触杀了试图偷二垒的跑垒员。
指捉住或逮捕某人。
Police nabbed the thief outside the store.
警察在商店外抓住了小偷。
表示迅速抢到或得到某物，带有突然性。
She nabbed the last ticket online.
她在网上抢到了最后一张票。
棒球术语，指触杀跑垒员使其出局。
The shortstop nabbed the runner at second base.
游击手在二垒触杀了跑垒员。
Not this
The police nabbed at the thief.
Use this
The police nabbed the thief.
nab 是及物动词，后面直接接宾语，不需要介词 at；应删去 at，直接说 nab the thief。
Not this
The police nab the thief yesterday.
Use this
The police nabbed the thief yesterday.
yesterday 表示过去时间，句子需用一般过去时；nab 的过去式是 nabbed（双写 b 再加 -ed），不能用原形。
Not this
The police are nabing the suspect.
Use this
The police are nabbing the suspect.
nab 是“辅音+元音+辅音”结尾的单音节动词，加 -ing 时须双写末尾辅音字母，所以是 nabbing 而不是 nabing。
Focus on the distinctions below. Other candidates are kept compact until a reliable usage note is available.
抓住小偷
The security guard nabbed the thief at the exit.
保安在出口处抓住了小偷。
被抓住，被逮捕
He got nabbed by the police for shoplifting.
他因在商店偷东西被警察抓住了。
抢到便宜货
She nabbed a bargain at the flea market.
她在跳蚤市场抢到了一件便宜货。
当场抓住某人
The police nabbed him in the act of shoplifting.
警察在他入店行窃时当场抓住了他。
触杀跑垒员
The shortstop nabbed the runner at second base.
游击手在二垒触杀了跑垒员。
Use nab naturally, then get feedback on meaning, tone, grammar, and phrasing.
Revisit a common error or keep this word in your review list.
助记：谐音‘拿布’，拿布一罩就 nab（抓住）——只是联想，非词源。
语域：informal 常见场景：日常口语、新闻报道、警匪语境 nab 多用于非正式场合，通常指突然抓住或逮捕某人；在正式书面语中较少使用，正式表达更常用 arrest 或 catch。
These words all rhyme with 'nab' /næb/ because their stressed vowel and final consonant /æb/ match. Be careful with lookalikes such as 'nap' /næp/ and 'nabs' /næbz/, which end in a different sound.
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.