How to Use dibs in a Sentence

  • I get dibs on the front seat!
  • The teams with the worst record on waiver claims will have first dibs.
    Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY, 29 Aug. 2023
  • Order books open this week for those who want first dibs.
    Gary Gastelu, Fox News, 28 Mar. 2018
  • One thing's for sure: Last one to call dibs has to be Midge—sorry not sorry.
    Emily Becker, Women's Health, 6 Sep. 2023
  • But in the meantime, investors have what amounts to second-dibs on the ships, and the vessels aren’t pledged to any other piece of debt.
    Paula Seligson, Bloomberg.com, 18 May 2020
  • That’s the home of the infamous leather couch, where Sheldon routinely called dibs at the one end.
    Lynette Rice, EW.com, 11 June 2019
  • Chefs at the top have first dibs at the cornucopia of ingredients, while those in the basement are left with the scraps.
    Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 15 May 2023
  • But if the couple decide to auction it off or something, ABC gets first dibs on buying it back.
    Lindsay Denninger, refinery29.com, 10 Mar. 2020
  • One result of that is that the well-connected often get first dibs, Noam Levey wrote.
    Los Angeles Times, 3 Apr. 2020
  • Many fans subscribed to last season in order to get first dibs on subscribing to this season.
    Jeffrey Lee Puckett, The Courier-Journal, 28 Feb. 2018
  • Home sweet home Wagner wanted Kristaps Porzingis' locker and booted a teammate who was about to take dibs on it.
    Shawn Windsor, Detroit Free Press, 2 Mar. 2018
  • The best response is to remind voters that big business enjoys the cushiest of safety nets and first dibs at the government trough.
    David Von Drehle, The Denver Post, 23 June 2019
  • Westbrook already called dibs on those shots during a recent film session.
    Mark Medina, USA TODAY, 28 Oct. 2019
  • City Council still has to approve it, but the preliminary list of candidates for first dibs includes 60 sites.
    Aubrey Nagle, Philly.com, 2 Nov. 2017
  • About this time of year, when the winter weary dream of torching all the dibs on the streets in a massive spring bonfire of rebirth, a little vision of sunshine and seawater sounds pretty good.
    Mike Sula, Chicago Reader, 28 Feb. 2018
  • That’s a whole lot of rearranging the deck chairs, with Pavel Zacha and Charlie Coyle expected to get first dibs next month at filling the primo vacancies.
    Kevin Paul Dupont, BostonGlobe.com, 19 Aug. 2023
  • People who pay taxes that contribute directly to the quality of the parks should be able to get first dibs in vacationing to those parks.
    Arpan Lobo, Detroit Free Press, 22 Mar. 2024
  • Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez’s respective daughters have already begun calling dibs on some of the pop star’s most iconic looks.
    Matt McNulty, PEOPLE.com, 4 June 2019
  • Senator Jack Reed was the do-no-wrong oldest son who got first dibs at everything from the top bunk to the appropriations committee.
    Globe Columnist, BostonGlobe.com, 28 Feb. 2023
  • Unger will direct this bilingual non-subscription show; subscribers will get first dibs on buying tickets.
    Jim Higgins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 11 Feb. 2020
  • Among civilized people, the following rules apply: First dibs goes to anyone paying for the entire trip (or a large portion thereof).
    Marisa Meltzer, Town & Country, 14 June 2023
  • Holders of premium cards, American Express isn’t shy about saying, get first dibs.
    Chris Dong, Travel + Leisure, 31 Mar. 2023
  • When a person dies and donates a liver, potential recipients in the region are prioritized and the sickest gets first dibs.
    Ted Alcorn, New York Times, 22 Dec. 2017
  • But the unwritten rules governing dibs in Chicago are the most sophisticated.
    The Economist, 22 Feb. 2018
  • Only half of its holiday inventory has made it to the United States — which means big names like Walmart and Target are generally getting first dibs.
    Washington Post, 7 Nov. 2021
  • Only half of its holiday inventory has made it to the United States -- which means big names like Walmart and Target are generally getting first dibs.
    Arkansas Online, 8 Nov. 2021
  • Icons get first dibs at Nordstrom Anniversary sale picks from now until August 7, when shopping opens to Ambassador-level members.
    Tiffany Dodson, SELF, 5 Aug. 2020
  • When somebody calls the Alameda association’s free hotline, for example, an email blast is sent out to all members, sparking a clamoring for dibs.
    John Metcalfe, The Mercury News, 14 May 2024
  • The phrase sounds like Marvel’s attempt at pandering to the Tinder generation (dibs on that screenplay, actually).
    Allison P. Davis, The Cut, 6 Oct. 2017
  • Downtain had obtained Shaw’s negotiating rights a month earlier by exploiting the Wave’s expansion status that gave the team first dibs.
    Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Apr. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dibs.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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