noun
1.
the thick-bodied, sluggish larva of several insects, as of a scarab beetle.
2.
a dull, plodding person; drudge.
3.
an unkempt person.
4.
Slang. food; victuals.
5.
any remaining roots or stumps after cutting vegetation to clear land for farming.
verb (used with object)
6.
to dig; clear of roots, stumps, etc.
7.
to dig up by the roots; uproot (often followed by up or out ).
8.
Slang. to supply with food; feed.
9.
Slang. to scrounge: to grub a cigarette.
00:10
Grub
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is lollygag. Does it mean:
| to spend time idly; loaf. |
| to flee; abscond: |
verb (used without object)
10.
to dig; search by or as if by digging: We grubbed through piles of old junk to find the deed.
11.
to lead a laborious or groveling life; drudge: It's wonderful to have money after having to grub for so many years.
12.
to engage in laborious study.
13.
Slang. to eat; take food.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To grub
Collins
World English Dictionary
grub (ɡrʌb) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb (when tr, | |
| 1. | to search for and pull up (roots, stumps, etc) by digging in the ground |
| 2. | to dig up the surface of (ground, soil, etc), esp to clear away roots, stumps, etc |
| 3. | (intr; |
| 4. | (intr) to work unceasingly, esp at a dull task or research |
| 5. | slang to provide (a person) with food or (of a person) to take food |
| 6. | slang chiefly (US) (tr) to scrounge: to grub a cigarette |
| —n | |
| 7. | the short legless larva of certain insects, esp beetles |
| 8. | slang food; victuals |
| 9. | a person who works hard, esp in a dull plodding way |
| 10. | informal (Brit) a dirty child |
| [C13: of Germanic origin; compare Old High German grubilōn to dig, German grübeln to rack one's brain, Middle Dutch grobben to scrape together; see | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
grub
c.1300, from hypothetical O.E. *grubbian, from W.Gmc. *grubbjan (cf. O.H.G. grubilon "to dig, search," Ger. grübeln "to meditate, ponder"), from P.Gmc. *grub- "to dig," base of O.E. grafan (see grave (v.)). The noun sense of "larva" (c.1400) is perhaps from the notion
of "digging insect," or from the possibly unrelated M.E. grub "dwarfish fellow." The slang sense of "food" is first recorded 1659, said to be from birds eating grubs, but also often linked with bub "drink." Grubby is c.1845, from grub (n.) in a sense of "dirty child," who presumably got that way from digging in earth.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
grub definition[grəb]
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Nearby Words
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