Dictionary — ontologydriven

dib en · NOUN · etymology 1

Variation of dip and/or dab.

A dibber (gardening tool).
One of the small bones in the knee joints of sheep uniting the bones above and below the joints.

Spelling	Features	Labels	Source
dibs	Number=Plur		lexicographic

Variation of dip and/or dab.

To dig a hole by poking; especially, to dig a small hole in soil for the purpose of planting a bulb or seed.
To move in a rapid, cautious manner; especially, with movement like a mouse or rat.

Spelling	Features	Source
dibs	Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres	lexicographic
dibbing	Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part	lexicographic
dibbed	Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part	lexicographic
dibbed	Tense=Past	lexicographic

(alt-of, alternative, qualifier:scouting) Alternative form of dyb.
alt of dyb
- I used to get through the dibbing and dobbing all right but during the howling I usually rolled over backwards. 2009, Clive James, Unreliable Memoirs, page 54:
- 'I'm a scout,' she smiled at him. The boy, in his turn, stared at Sam. He'd heard somewhere that scouting had got more trendy lately, that it was more snowboarding and surfing than dib-dib-dibbing and doing old ladies' gardens. 2009, Wendy Holden, Beautiful People:

Spelling	Features	Source
dibbing	Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part	lexicographic
dibs	Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres	lexicographic
dibbed	Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part	lexicographic
dibbed	Tense=Past	lexicographic