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Origin and history of dab

dab(v.)

early 14c., dabben "to strike," of unknown origin, perhaps imitative. Compare Old Norse dabba "to tap, slap." Modern sense of "strike gently with the hand, strike with a slight, quick pressure" developed by mid-16c., influenced by French dauber (see daub). Related: Dabbed; dabbing; dabber.

As a noun from c. 1300, "heavy blow with a weapon," later "gentle blow with the hand or some soft substance" (1755). Meaning "small lump or mass of something soft" is from 1749. Dab hand is British slang, 1828, from dab "expert, knowing or skillful person" (1690s), said by OED to be "school slang," of unknown origin, perhaps from dab in the "strike lightly" sense. Compare dabster, which meant both "an expert" (1708) or "a bungler" (1871, perhaps by confusion with daub).

also from early 14c.

Entries linking to dab

daub(v.)

late 14c., dauben, "to smear with soft, adhesive matter, to plaster or whitewash a wall" (Dauber as a surname is recorded from mid-13c.), from Old French dauber "to whitewash, plaster" (13c.), perhaps from Latin dealbare, from de-, here probably meaning "thoroughly," + albare "to whiten," from albus "white" (see alb).

From 1590s as "to dress or adorn (a person) without style or taste." Painting sense is from 1620s. Related: Daubed; daubing, daubery. As a noun from mid-15c. as "daubing material, cheap kind of mortar;" 1761 as "inartistic painting."

dabble(v.)

1550s, "to dip a little and often," hence "to wet by splashing," probably a frequentative of dab. Figurative sense of "do superficially" attested by 1620s. Related: Dabbled; dabbling. An Ellen Dablewife is in the Lancashire Inquests from 1336.

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    splash
    1715 (intransitive), "dabble about in water or some other liquid;" 1722 (transitive), "spatter," probably an alteration of plash with an intensive s-. Related: Splashed; splashing. Splash-board, to protect the occupants of a vehicle from splashing of the horse's feet, is attested
    tap
    c. 1200, tappen, "give a tap, strike lightly but audibly," either native or from or in part from Old French taper "tap, rap, strike" (12c.), ultimately imitative of the sound of rapping. Specifically as "strike one's foot lightly on something" (in time to music, etc.) from mid-15
    swab
    1650s, "mop made of rope or yarn," used for cleaning the deck of a ship, etc., from swabber "mop for cleaning a ship's deck" (c. 1600), from Dutch zwabber, akin to West Frisian swabber "mop," from Proto-Germanic *swabb-, a word perhaps of imitative origin and denoting back-and-fo
    deft
    Gothic gadaban "to be fit," Old Norse dafna "to grow strong," Dutch deftig "important, relevant," from Proto-Germanic *dab...
    touch
    late 13c., "make deliberate physical contact with," from Old French tochier "to touch, hit, knock; mention, deal with" (11c., Modern French toucher), from Vulgar Latin *toccare "to knock, strike" as a bell (source also of Spanish tocar, Italian toccare), perhaps of imitative orig
    couth
    Middle English couth "known, well-known; usual, customary," from Old English cuðe "known," past participle of cunnan "to know," less commonly "to have power to, to be able" (see can (v.1)). As a past participle it died out 16c. with the emergence of could, but the old word was re
    strike
    Middle English striken, from Old English strican (past tense strac, past participle stricen) "pass lightly over, stroke, smooth, rub" (senses now obsolete), also "go, move, proceed, make one's way," from Proto-Germanic *strikanan (source also of Old Norse strykva "to stroke," Old
    apt
    mid-14c., "inclined, disposed;" late 14c., "suited, fitted, adapted, possessing the necessary qualities for the purpose," from Old French ate "fitting, suitable, appropriate" (13c., Modern French apte), or directly from Latin aptus "fit, suited, proper, appropriate," adjectival u
    apply
    late 14c., "join or combine (with); attach (to something), adhere," from Old French aploiier "apply, use, attach" (12c., Modern French appliquer), from Latin applicare "attach to, join, connect;" figuratively, "devote (oneself) to, give attention," from ad "to" (see ad-) + plicar
    put-on
    "ruse, deception," 1937, from earlier adjectival meaning "assumed, feigned" (1620s), a figurative extension of the verbal phrase on the notion of putting on costumes or disguises. To put on (v.), of clothes, garments, etc., is by early 15c.; see from put (v.) + on (adv.). Hence "

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