I was wondering what "take a stab at doing something" means? For example
I'll take a stab at answering these.
Tell me more
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closed as general reference by RegDwighт♦ Apr 11 '12 at 11:38
This question is too basic; it can be definitively and permanently answered by a single link to a standard internet reference source designed specifically to find that type of information. See the FAQ for guidance on how to improve it.
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As everybody has said, to take a stab at means to attempt. I want to additionally note here that I believe it to be related to the idiom stab in the dark, meaning an attempt at something with little guidance or hope of success. It doesn't carry the full weight of that meaning, though, just an attenuated implication of not necessarily knowing what one is doing, more likely used as mild self-deprecating humor than anything else. |
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It is simply an informal way of saying "make an attempt". The following are all equivalent answers to the question of "Do you want to do (something)?"
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Stab at means attempting to do something. The NOAD report the following example:
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