dob in
B1 informal separable transitive
In simple words
To tell a teacher, parent, or police officer that someone has done something bad.
Meanings
1 B1
idiomatic
informal
To report someone's wrongdoing to a person in authority. (Australian/NZ)
"Someone dobbed him in to the manager for taking long lunch breaks."
Grammar: separable
2 C1
idiomatic
informal
To nominate or volunteer someone for a task, often without their consent. (Australian)
"She was dobbed in to organise the end-of-year party before she even knew about it."
Grammar: separable
Usage notes
Primarily Australian and New Zealand English. Rarely used in British or American English. Also used in Australian English to mean volunteering or nominating someone (often without their agreement) for a task.
Commonly used with
police teacher boss authority colleague
Forms
Base
dob in
I/you/we/they
3rd person
dobs in
he/she/it
Past simple
dobed in
yesterday
Past participle
dobed in
have + pp
-ing form
dobing in
continuous
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Synonyms
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