* Short vowel sounds occur when the vowel is followed by a single consonant. In "grabbing," the vowel "a" is followed by the consonant cluster "bb," which is two consonants.
* Long vowel sounds often occur when a vowel is followed by a consonant and a silent "e" at the end of the word. However, "grabbing" does not end in a silent "e."
Therefore, "grabbing" has a long "a" sound (like the "a" in "day").