Meanings
dibs1
- informaluncountableThe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else.
I call dibs on the hammock!
4 more examples
He called dibs on batting first.
Who's got dibs on the chips?
Del Valle has the blessing of a garage, so he doesn't have to claim “dibs” on shoveled street spots himself, he said.
2011 March 23, “We asked mayoral candidates: Do you support 'dibs' on parking spots?”, in Chicago Sun-TimesIt aims to give unionized California government workers "more workplace discipline protections and first dibs on state government work," as the Sacramento Bee put it.
2012 February 16, “Our View: Public Employees Bill of Rights Act all wrong”, in Appeal-DemocratSynonyms: bags
- informalUsed to claim this right.
present singular third person dibses · participle present dibsing · participle past dibsed · past dibsed
dibs2
- dateduncountableA sweet preparation or treacle of grape juice, much used in the East.
Besides what is thus consumed, the village makes about 180,000 pounds of raisins , one third of which is for home consumption , and about 24,000 pounds of dibs, ( grape molasses , ) all of which is for home use
1874, John William Kirton, The Temperance Hand-Book
dibs3
DIBs4
- pluralplural of DIB
Dibs5
- pluralplural of Dib
Synonyms & antonyms
nounThe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else.
Origin
dibs · noun, interjection, verb
Since the early 19th century, of disputed origin. Most commonly thought to be from dibstones (“counters used in a game with the same name”). Also from dib (“to tap”) or related to northern English dip (“small depression in the ground”), or a shortened version of divide.
Full word history & related roots →dibs · noun
- Proto-Semitic*dibš-
- Arabicدِبْس (dibs)
- Englishdibs
Borrowed from Arabic دِبْس (dibs).
More words from Arabic
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Danish helle for
- helle forthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
Finnish varaus, apus
- varausthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- apusthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- varaansaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- mäsaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- mullesaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- apussaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- varatato claim a temporary right to something; to reserve
- apustaato claim a temporary right to something; to reserve
French prems, preums
- premsthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- preumsthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- primsthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- shotgunthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- premssaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- preums m primssaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- shotgunsaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
German Vorrecht
- Vorrechtthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
Hungarian stipistop, stipistopi
- stipistopsaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- stipistopisaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- stip-stopsaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- lestoppolto claim a temporary right to something; to reserve
Icelandic pant
- pantthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
Norwegian Bokmål fus
- fusthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
Polish zaklepywać, zaklepać
- zaklepywaćthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- zaklepaćthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
Russian чур, чур
- чур (čur)the right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- чур (čur)said to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
Spanish primeras, prioridad
- primerasthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- prioridadthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- reservathe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- pidosaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- es míosaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- me lo pidosaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- lo clamo primerosaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- me lo reservosaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- para mísaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- míosaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- pedirto claim a temporary right to something; to reserve
- clamarto claim a temporary right to something; to reserve
- reservarto claim a temporary right to something; to reserve
Swedish pax, tjing
- paxthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- tjingthe right to use or enjoy something exclusively or before anyone else
- paxsaid to reserve to the right to something before anyone else
- paxato claim a temporary right to something; to reserve
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with dibs
All rhymes →Cite this entry
dibs. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dibs
“dibs.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dibs. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “dibs,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dibs.
Source: dibs on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.