Meaning

noun a sudden sharp feeling

noun a strong blow with a knife or other sharp pointed instrument

noun informal words for any attempt or effort

originFirst attested in Scottish English (compare Scots stob, stobbe, stabb (“a pointed stick or stake; a thrust with a pointed weapon”)), from Middle English stabbe (“a stab”), probably a variant of Middle English stob, stub, stubbe (“pointed stick, stake, thorn, stub, stump”), from Old Norse stobbi, stubbi, cognate with Old English stybb. Cognate with Middle Dutch stobbe. Supposed by some to derive…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0