as in expert
a person with a high level of knowledge or skill in a field
a British mystery writer who's an undisputed dab hand at building suspense
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Recent Examples of dab hand
In addition to the outfits of the characters in her famous self-portraits, American artist Cindy Sherman is also a dab hand at finds for herself.
—
Lily Templeton, WWD, 3 Sep. 2019
Van Norden, a dab hand with Shakespeare, is a natural for Shaw.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024
Benedict, meanwhile, is an expert colorist, a dab hand with print who knows all about decorative drama.
—Grace McCloud, Vogue, 21 Nov. 2023
Zach is a dab hand at herbal knockout potions and the occasional amateur amputation, and there’s a scene featuring the latter in which Wheatley indulges his twin tastes for deadpan comedy and head-on gross-outs to the extreme.
—BostonGlobe.com, 14 Apr. 2021
Sarah, a dab hand at deflecting sexism and maintaining her professional composure, takes the microphone and expresses her excitement at being on board.
—Justin Chang Film Critic, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2020
That, perhaps, is a little less in the bag, but the Kremlin’s operatives are dab hands at suppressing protests and neutering the press.
—The Economist, 12 Mar. 2020
This is a very different approach to sister-in-law Kate Middleton, and Harry’s older brother, Prince William, who have so far welcomed three royal babies into the world, and are kind of a dab hand at the whole thing.
—Lucy Wood, Marie Claire, 11 Apr. 2019
The returning characters include Lucius Best/Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson) and steely, brilliant Edna Mode (voiced by director Bird), who turns out to be a dab hand at babysitting the literal fireball Jack-Jack.
—Michael Phillips, chicagotribune.com, 11 June 2018
Lily Templeton, WWD, 3 Sep. 2019
Van Norden, a dab hand with Shakespeare, is a natural for Shaw.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024
Benedict, meanwhile, is an expert colorist, a dab hand with print who knows all about decorative drama.
—Grace McCloud, Vogue, 21 Nov. 2023
Zach is a dab hand at herbal knockout potions and the occasional amateur amputation, and there’s a scene featuring the latter in which Wheatley indulges his twin tastes for deadpan comedy and head-on gross-outs to the extreme.
—BostonGlobe.com, 14 Apr. 2021
Sarah, a dab hand at deflecting sexism and maintaining her professional composure, takes the microphone and expresses her excitement at being on board.
—Justin Chang Film Critic, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2020
That, perhaps, is a little less in the bag, but the Kremlin’s operatives are dab hands at suppressing protests and neutering the press.
—The Economist, 12 Mar. 2020
This is a very different approach to sister-in-law Kate Middleton, and Harry’s older brother, Prince William, who have so far welcomed three royal babies into the world, and are kind of a dab hand at the whole thing.
—Lucy Wood, Marie Claire, 11 Apr. 2019
The returning characters include Lucius Best/Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson) and steely, brilliant Edna Mode (voiced by director Bird), who turns out to be a dab hand at babysitting the literal fireball Jack-Jack.
—Michael Phillips, chicagotribune.com, 11 June 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dab hand
Noun
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Currently, experts say, AI’s performance is bottlenecked by these two factors, especially power capacity.—
Billy Perrigo,
TIME,
22 Jan. 2025
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Other experts pointed out that the order could have a chilling effect on relations between government agencies and tech platforms, potentially harming national security.—
Hadas Gold and Liam Reilly,
CNN,
22 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Vahe was an English major at the University of Pennsylvania and earned his master’s degree at Mizzou.—
Vahe Gregorian,
Kansas City Star,
19 Jan. 2025
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Nicole grew up in Idaho, graduated from Idaho State University and Northwestern University with a master’s degree in journalism.—
Nicole Blanchard,
Idaho Statesman,
17 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Most presidents have tried the same thing Historically, most presidents and their advisers – and indeed most scholars – have agreed that government bureaucracy is not designed in ways that promote efficiency.—
Jennifer Selin,
The Conversation,
24 Jan. 2025
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Although a sharp debate broke out among scholars, and the courts soon got involved, the program, in its essence, survived the controversy.—
Stephen L. Carter,
The Mercury News,
23 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Around him, dense as a swarm of tiny insects, float tiny images of fellow adepts engaged in all manner of outré shenanigans.—
Holland Cotter,
New York Times,
26 Dec. 2024
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Naomi Goggin Switch to island time—and expect transportation snafus Even with two planners, and a bride adept at project management, there was one logistical hurdle that was tough to cross: local transportation.—
Kaitlin Menza,
Condé Nast Traveler,
26 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Ichiro Suzuki, a wizard of sport and style, nearly cleared both yesterday.—
Chris Branch,
The Athletic,
22 Jan. 2025
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Or a witch or wizard standing over a cauldron concocting life-altering potions.—
Simone Milasas,
Forbes,
22 Jan. 2025
Noun
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This week, Billboard’s New Music Latin roundup and playlist — curated by Billboard Latin and Billboard Español editors — features fresh new music from artists including Cazzu, J Balvin, Danny Ocean, and Alejandro Sanz’s first collaborative effort with Grupo Frontera, to name a few.—
Jessica Roiz,
Billboard,
24 Jan. 2025
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Members of the Community Brigade, a cowboy collective of friends, neighbors, artists, and parents from the Malibu area.—
Emma Marie Jenkinson,
Vogue,
24 Jan. 2025
Noun
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In today's job market, choosing between being a virtuoso or polymath is like choosing between a chef's knife and a Swiss Army knife - one perfectly crafted for a specific purpose, the other ready for anything.—
Ann Kirschner,
Forbes,
23 Dec. 2024
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Zakir Hussain, virtuoso of the tabla instrument and a towering figure in Indian classical music, died on Dec. 15 of chronic lung disease, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, at a hospital in San Francisco.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
16 Dec. 2024
Noun
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This is likely because Miller isn’t, or wasn’t, a marketing guru, but a practitioner.—
Tim Maurer,
Forbes,
19 Jan. 2025
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In January 2021, the grooming guru shared details about their meet-cute.—
Brian Anthony Hernandez,
People.com,
13 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near dab hand
Cite this Entry
“Dab hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dab%20hand. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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