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rub - 11 dictionary results

rub

  [ruhb] ,verb, rubbed, rub⋅bing, noun
Use rub in a Sentence
–verb (used with object)
1. to subject the surface of (a thing or person) to pressure and friction, as in cleaning, smoothing, polishing, coating, massaging, or soothing: to rub a table top with wax polish; to rub the entire back area.
2. to move (something) back and forth or with a rotary motion, as against or along another surface: to rub the cloth over the glass pane.
3. to spread or apply (something) with pressure and friction over something else or a person: to rub lotion on her chapped hands.
4. to move (two things) with pressure and friction over or back and forth over each other (often fol. by together): He rubbed his hands together.
5. to mark, polish, force, move, etc. (something) by pressure and friction (often fol. by over, in, or into).
6. to remove by pressure and friction; erase (often fol. by off or out).
–verb (used without object)
7. to exert pressure and friction on something.
8. to move with pressure against something.
9. to admit of being rubbed in a specified manner: Chalk rubs off easily.
10. Chiefly British. to proceed, continue in a course, or keep going with effort or difficulty (usually fol. by on, along, or through): He manages to rub along.
–noun
11. an act or instance of rubbing: an alcohol rub.
12. something that annoys or irritates one's feelings, as a sharp criticism, a sarcastic remark, or the like: to resent rubs concerning one's character.
13. an annoying experience or circumstance.
14. an obstacle, impediment, or difficulty: We'd like to travel, but the rub is that we have no money.
15. a rough or abraded area caused by rubbing.
—Verb phrases
16. rub down,
a. to smooth off, polish, or apply a coating to: to rub a chair down with sandpaper.
b. to give a massage to.
17. rub off on, to become transferred or communicated to by example or association: Some of his good luck must have rubbed off on me.
18. rub out,
a. to obliterate; erase.
b. Slang. to murder: They rubbed him out before he could get to the police.
—Idioms
19. rub it in, Informal. to emphasize or reiterate something unpleasant in order to tease or annoy: The situation was embarrassing enough without having you rub it in.
20. rub the wrong way, to irritate; offend; annoy: a manner that seemed to rub everyone the wrong way.
21. rub up, British Informal. to refresh one's memory of (a subject, language, etc.).
Origin:
1300–50; 1860–65 for def. 18b; ME rubben (v.); c. Fris rubben, Dan rubbe, Sw rubba

Synonyms:
14. hitch, catch, thing, trouble, pinch.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To rub
rub   (rŭb)   
v.   rubbed, rub·bing, rubs

v.   tr.
  1. To apply pressure and friction to (a surface).
  2. To clean, polish, or manipulate by the application of pressure and friction.
  3. To apply to a surface firmly and with friction: rub lotion on the hands; rub dye into the fabric.
  4. To move (an object or objects) firmly along a surface, especially repeatedly: rub an eraser over the blackboard; rubbed my fingers over the sore spot.
  5. To cause to become worn, chafed, or irritated.
  6. To remove, erase, or expunge: rub away a stain; rubbed the sleep from my eyes.
v.   intr.
    1. To exert pressure or friction on something.
    2. To wear or chafe with friction: My shoes were beginning to rub.
    3. To cause irritation or annoyance.
  2. To move along in contact with a surface; graze or scrape.
  3. To be transferred or removed by contact or proximity: newsprint that rubbed off on my fingers; wished some of her luck would rub off on me.
n.  
  1. The act of rubbing.
  2. The application of friction and pressure: a back rub.
  3. A substance or preparation applied by rubbing, especially:
    1. A liniment or balm.
    2. A seasoning made of ground spices and herbs, applied to the surface of meat, fish, or vegetables before cooking.
  4. An unevenness on a surface.
  5. An act or remark that annoys or hurts another.
  6. A difficulty or obstacle: "The rub for extraterrestrial life on Europa is that the moon's surface is an icy wasteland" (William J. Broad).
  7. To obliterate by or as if by rubbing.
  8. Slang To kill; murder.
Phrasal Verb(s):
rub downTo perform a brisk rubbing of the body, as in massage.
rub inTo harp on (an unpleasant matter).
rub out
  1. To obliterate by or as if by rubbing.
  2. Slang To kill; murder.

Idiom(s):
rub elbows/shouldersTo mix or socialize closely: diplomats rubbing elbows with heads of state.

Idiom(s):
rub (one's) handsTo experience or display pleased anticipation, self-satisfaction, or glee.

Idiom(s):
rub (someone's) nose in Slang To bring repeatedly and forcefully to another's attention.

Idiom(s):
rub (someone) the wrong wayTo annoy; irritate: "One can see . . . how [his] expression of his ideals and intentions must have rubbed many people the wrong way" (Christopher Lehmann-Haupt).

Idiom(s):
rub up onTo refresh one's knowledge of: I have to rub up on my French.

[Middle English rubben.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Rub

Rub\, n.

Rub of the green (Golf), anything happening to a ball in motion, such as its being deflected or stopped by any agency outside the match, or by the fore caddie. Rubaiyat \Ru*bai*yat"\, n. pl.; sing. Rubai. [Ar. rub[=a]'iy[=a]h quatrian, pl. of rub[=a]'iy having four radicals, fr. rub[=a]' four.] Quatrians; as, the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam. Sometimes in pl. construed as sing., a poem in such stanzas.

Rub

Rub\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Rubbed; p. pr. & vb. n. Rubbing.] [Probably of Celtic origin; cf. W. rhwbiaw, gael. rub.]

1. To subject (a body) to the action of something moving over its surface with pressure and friction, especially to the action of something moving back and forth; as, to rub the flesh with the hand; to rub wood with sandpaper.

It shall be expedient, after that body is cleaned, to rub the body with a coarse linen cloth. --Sir T. Elyot.

2. To move over the surface of (a body) with pressure and friction; to graze; to chafe; as, the boat rubs the ground.

3. To cause (a body) to move with pressure and friction along a surface; as, to rub the hand over the body.

Two bones rubbed hard against one another. --Arbuthnot.

4. To spread a substance thinly over; to smear.

The smoothed plank, . . . New rubbed with balm. --Milton.

5. To scour; to burnish; to polish; to brighten; to cleanse; -- often with up or over; as, to rub up silver.

The whole business of our redemption is to rub over the defaced copy of the creation. --South.

6. To hinder; to cross; to thwart. [R.]

'T is the duke's pleasure, Whose disposition, all the world well knows, Will not be rubbed nor stopped. --Shak.

To rub down. (a) To clean by rubbing; to comb or curry; as, to down a horse. (b) To reduce or remove by rubbing; as, to rub down the rough points.

To rub off, to clean anything by rubbing; to separate by friction; as, to rub off rust.

To rub out, to remove or separate by friction; to erase; to obliterate; as, to rub out a mark or letter; to rub out a stain.

To rub up. (a) To burnish; to polish; to clean. (b) To excite; to awaken; to rouse to action; as, to rub up the memory.

Rub

Rub\, v. i. 1. To move along the surface of a body with pressure; to grate; as, a wheel rubs against the gatepost.

2. To fret; to chafe; as, to rub upon a sore.

3. To move or pass with difficulty; as, to rub through woods, as huntsmen; to rub through the world.

To rub along or on, to go on with difficulty; as, they manage, with strict economy, to rub along. [Colloq.]

Rub

Rub\, n. [Cf. W. rhwb. See Rub, v,t,]

1. The act of rubbing; friction.

2. That which rubs; that which tends to hinder or obstruct motion or progress; hindrance; obstruction, an impediment; especially, a difficulty or obstruction hard to overcome; a pinch.

Every rub is smoothed on our way. --Shak.

To sleep, perchance to dream; ay, there's the rub. --Shak.

Upon this rub, the English ambassadors thought fit to demur. --Hayward.

One knows not, certainly, what other rubs might have been ordained for us by a wise Providence. --W. Besant.

3. Inequality of surface, as of the ground in the game of bowls; unevenness. --Shak.

4. Something grating to the feelings; sarcasm; joke; as, a hard rub.

5. Imperfection; failing; fault. [Obs.] --Beau. & Fl.

6. A chance. [Obs.]

Flight shall leave no Greek a rub. --Chapman.

7. A stone, commonly flat, used to sharpen cutting tools; a whetstone; -- called also rubstone.

Rub iron, an iron guard on a wagon body, against which a wheel rubs when cramped too much.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : rub
Spanish: restregar, frotar,
German: reiben,
Japanese: こする
More Translations »

rub  (v.)
1377, perhaps related to E.Fris. rubben "to scratch, rub," and Low Ger. rubbeling "rough, uneven," or similar words in Scandinavian (cf. Dan. rubbe "to rub, scrub," Norw. rubba), of uncertain origin. Hamlet's there's the rub (1602) preserves a noun sense of "obstacle, inequality on ground" first recorded 1586 and common in 17c. To rub (someone) the wrong way is from 1883. To rub noses in greeting as a sign of friendship (attested from 1822) formerly was common among Eskimos, Maoris, and some other Pacific Islanders. Rub out "obliterate" is from 1567; underworld slang sense of "kill" is recorded from 1848, Amer.Eng. Rub off "have an influence on" is recorded from 1959.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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RUB

In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the Russian Ruble.

Investopedia Commentary

The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion.

See also: Currency, FOREX, Hard Currency, Money

Also spelled: RUB

Investopedia.com. Copyright © 1999-2005 - All rights reserved. Owned and Operated by Investopedia Inc.
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Main Entry: rub
Pronunciation: 'r&b
Function: noun
1 : the application of friction with pressure rub>
2 : a sound heard in auscultation that is produced by the friction of one structure moving against another
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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rub (rŭb)
n.

  1. The application of friction and pressure.
  2. Such a procedure applied to the body.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source

rub

In addition to the idioms beginning with rub, also see the rub.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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