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 JAB (or Job), subs. (colloquial American).—A prod; a poke; a stab.

1872. C. D. Warner, Backlog Studies, 279. 'Oh yes, I have,' I cried, starting up and giving the fire a jab with the poker.

1884. Detroit Free Press, 3 May, p. 5, col. 4. He gave each of the Epistles a vicious jab with the cancelling stamp, and then tossed it into the mail-bag.

Verb. (colloquial American).—To handle harshly; to hustle; to prod or poke; to stab (with a pointed weapon).

1868. Putnam's Magazine, Sept. (quoted by De Vere). 'The Missouri stoker pulls and jabs his plutonic monster as an irate driver would regulate his mule.'

1885. F. R. Stockton, Rudder Grange, iv. 'Shall we run on deck and shoot him as he swims?' I cried. 'No,' said the boarder, 'we'll get the boat-hook, and jab him if he tries to climb up.'

1888. Denver Republican, 6 May. When it [hair] don't twist easily she's as like to jab at it with her scissors and shorten it herself as trust it to anybody as knows how.

1889. Detroit Free Press, 5 Jan. Moses jabbed at him and ran the umbrella clean through him.

1890. Tit Bits, 26 April, p. 55, col. 3. If you jab that umbrella in my eye again, you'll get a broken head!

Jabber, subs. (old colloquial).—Chatter; incoherent or inarticulate and unintelligible speech (as a foreign language heard by one ignorant of it). See verb.

1706. Ward, Hudibras Redivivus, I, v. 5. And stopp'd their bold presumptuous labour, By unintelligible jabber.

1726. Swift, Gulliver's Travels, 'Gulliver, to his cousin Sympson.' They use a sort of jabber and do not go naked.

1827. Johnson, Eng. Dict. [Todd] s.v. Jabber, garrulity Bishop Fleetwood somewhere uses the word in his works; and it is still a colloquial term.

1854. Our Cruise in the Undine, p. 35. The jabber began and almost distracted us.

1879. Jas. Payn, High Spirits (Aunt by Marriage). When one considers the packing, and the crossing the Channel, and the jabber upon the other side of it, which not one in ten of us understands and the tenth only imperfectly.

1888. Boldrewood, Robbery Under Arms, viii. Is it French or Queensland blacks' jabber?

Verb. (old: now recognised). See quots.

1543. Bale, Yet a Course, fol. 43, b. Censynge, Latyne, jabberinge.

1690. B. E. Dict. Cant, Crew, s.v. Jabber, to Talk thick and fast, as great Praters do, or to Chatter, like a Magpye.

1716. Addison, Tory Foxhunter, [in Freeholder, No. 22, Mar. 5]. He did not know what travelling was good for but to teach a man to ride the great horse, to jabber French &c.

1725. New Cant. Dict., s.v. Jabber.