To have first dibs

[Chicken Sandwich]

296
00:18:32,680 --> 00:18:36,640
Are you and Cat Deeley an item,
then?

297
00:18:40,720 --> 00:18:44,360
Why? You're not jealous, are you?
No, no, she's...

298
00:18:45,480 --> 00:18:47,440
she's very glamorous.

299
00:18:50,680 --> 00:18:55,039
Look, I didn't want to say too much,
but, um...

300
00:18:55,040 --> 00:18:56,080
you've rumbled us.

301
00:18:58,240 --> 00:19:01,439
How long's that been going on?
Long enough. Hmm.

302
00:19:01,440 --> 00:19:04,799
Yeah, is it a rebound thing?
Who knows?

303
00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:07,639
But, um, you've still got first dibs
on me, but the clock is ticking.

304
00:19:07,640 --> 00:19:10,119
I just don't want her to get hurt.

This is a dialogue from "Life's Too Short", episode 6 between Warwick Davis and his ex-wife. I don't understand what he means by "you've still got first dibs on me".

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English:

dibs / dɪbz / noun [ plural ] American English informal

the right to have, use, or do something : Freshmen have first dibs on dormitory rooms.

I don't get it, especially in conjunction with "the clock is ticking". Perhaps it means that she was the one who first slept with him?

Can someone help me out? Thanks.

[englishhobby]

It looks like the speaker in 303 invites the other to closer relationship (= you still have more right to be with me than others do).
"The clock is ticking" means "don't waste time, don't hesitate", perhaps, though I am not sure...

[Barb_D]

You can still claim me as yours, but you better do so quickly. That right won't last forever.

[Chicken Sandwich]

Thanks.

Just out of curiousity. The dictionary says it's an American English expression, though though Life's Too Short is a British television show. Are American English expressions common in British English (more so than the other way around), or is the dictionary not entirely correct?

[Ouisch]

Thanks.

Just out of curiousity. The dictionary says it's an American English expression, though though Life's Too Short is a British television show. Are American English expressions common in British English (more so than the other way around), or is the dictionary not entirely correct?

Even though "dibs" is associated more with AmE today, the expression actually originated in England.