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rub

noun, verb — 16 senses

rub

nounalso spelled RUB

UK, US /ɹʌb/ · IE /ɹʊb/

Etymology Inherited from Middle English rubben, of unknown origin; possibly ultimately from Proto-Germanic *rubbōną, related to *reufaną (“to tear”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian rubje (“to rub, scrape”), German Low German rubben (“to rub”), Low German rubblig (“rough, uneven”), Dutch robben, rubben (“to rub smooth; scrape; scrub”), Danish rubbe (“to rub, scrub”), Icelandic and Norwegian rubba (“to scrape”). More at reave. Compare typologically Latin fricō < friō < Proto-Indo-European *bʰreyH- (whence also Russian брить (britʹ, “to shave”)).

7 senses
  1. 1An act of rubbing.
  2. 2A difficulty or problem.
  3. 3A quip or sarcastic remark.
  4. 4In the game of crown green bowls, any obstacle by which…
  5. 5Any substance designed to be applied by rubbing.
  6. 6A mixture of spices applied to meat before it is barbecued.
  7. 7A loan.
1

An act of rubbing.

  • Give that lamp a good rub and see if any genies come out.
2

A difficulty or problem.

  • To die, to sleep— / To sleep—perchance to dream. Ay, there's the rub! / For in that sleep of death what dreams may come, / When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, / Must give us pausec. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:
  • […] the propriety of the cabman's shelter, as it was called, hardly a stonesthrow away near Butt bridge where they might hit upon some drinkables in the shape of a milk and soda or a mineral. But how to get there was the rub.1922 February, James Joyce, “[[Episode 16]]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, […], →OCLC:
1 more example
  • 'My dear Devereux, I say, you mustn't talk in that wild way. You—you talk like a ruined man!' 'And I so comfortable!' 'Why, to be sure, Dick, you have had some little rubs, and, maybe, your follies and your vexations; but, hang it, you are young; you can't get experience—at least, so I've found it—without paying for it. […]'1863, Sheridan Le Fanu, The House by the Churchyard:
3

Archaic A quip or sarcastic remark.

4

In the game of crown green bowls, any obstacle by which a bowl is diverted from its normal course.

5

Any substance designed to be applied by rubbing.

  • a heat rub intended for muscular strains
6

A mixture of spices applied to meat before it is barbecued.

Synonyms
hitch, hiccup, catch, kink, glitch, snag
Derived terms
backrub, chest rub, chub rub, Dutch rub, footrub, hand rub, heat rub, Martindale rub test, Princeton rub, rub and tug, rub board, rub-board, rub-boardist, rub iron, rub-off, rub of the green, rubproof, rubstone, rub-up, therein lies the rub

rub

verb

Etymology Inherited from Middle English rubben, of unknown origin; possibly ultimately from Proto-Germanic *rubbōną, related to *reufaną (“to tear”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian rubje (“to rub, scrape”), German Low German rubben (“to rub”), Low German rubblig (“rough, uneven”), Dutch robben, rubben (“to rub smooth; scrape; scrub”), Danish rubbe (“to rub, scrub”), Icelandic and Norwegian rubba (“to scrape”). More at reave. Compare typologically Latin fricō < friō < Proto-Indo-European *bʰreyH- (whence also Russian брить (britʹ, “to shave”)).

7 senses
  1. 1To move (one object) while maintaining contact with…
  2. 2To be rubbed against something.
  3. 3To spread a substance thinly over; to smear.
  4. 4To move or pass with difficulty.
  5. 5To scour; to burnish; to polish; to brighten; to…
  6. 6To hinder; to cross; to thwart.
  7. 7To touch the jack with the bowl.
1

To move (one object) while maintaining contact with another object over some area, with pressure and friction.

  • I rubbed the cloth over the glass.
  • The cat rubbed itself against my leg.
4 more examples
  • I rubbed my hands together for warmth.
  • I couldn't rub the stain from the tablecloth.
  • You ſhould rub your Teeth and whole Mouth and Gums, the Pallate and Tongue, with a clean courſe cloth, rubbing off the ſlime which groweth upon them in the night.1680, T. K., The Kitchin-Phyſician; Or, a Guide for Good-Housewives in Maintaining Their Families in Health. […] , How to cleanſe the Teeth, and keep them ſound, page 44:
  • […] Walden rubbed his hands together and smiled contentedly.1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter VII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
2

To be rubbed against something.

  • My shoes are beginning to rub.
3

To spread a substance thinly over; to smear.

  • meat rubbed with spices before barbecuing
  • The smoothed plank, […] / New rubbed with balm.1667, John Milton, “Book I”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
4

Dated To move or pass with difficulty.

  • to rub through woods, as huntsmen
5

To scour; to burnish; to polish; to brighten; to cleanse; often with up or over.

  • to rub up silver
  • The whole business of our redemption is, in short, only to rub over the defaced copy of the creationa. 1716, Robert South, Man Created in God's Image:
6

To hinder; to cross; to thwart.

  • 'Tis the duke's pleasure, / Whose disposition, all the world well knows, / Will not be rubbed nor stopped.c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii]:
7

To touch the jack with the bowl.

Synonyms
rub
Derived terms
34 termsrerub, rub along, rub away, rubbable, rubber, rubbing, rubboard, rub down, rub elbows, rub in, rub it in, rub off, rub off on, rub one off, rub one out, rub oneself off, rub one's face with a brass candlestick, rub one's hands, rub one's hands together, rub out, rub salt in someone's wounds, rub salt in the wound, rub shoulders, rub someone's face in, rub someone's nose in, rub someone the right way, rub someone the wrong way, rub the fear of God into, rub up, rub up against, rub up on, rub up the wrong way, two brain cells to rub together, two pennies to rub together
Related terms
act sexually, make clean, sexually stimulate
Hypernyms
slide
Hyponyms
abrade, abrase, buff, burnish, chafe, fondle, frot, frottage, grate, polish, rub down, scour, scrub, shine, stroke, wipe

RUB

noun
1

Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Microbiology, Natural sciences, Physical sciences Any of a group of proteins similar to ubiquitin

2

Abbreviation, Initialism Initialism of rich urban biker.

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — authors: page histories for rub and RUB.

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