scrub

Meaning

Adj

Mean; dirty; contemptible; scrubby.

Noun

1. (uncountable) A thicket or jungle, often specified by the name of the prevailing plant.
2. (uncountable) Vegetation judged to be of inferior quality or of little use to humans, though sometimes thick and impenetrable, growing in poor soil or in sand; also, brush.
3. (US, countable) One of the common livestock of a region of no particular breed or not of pure breed, especially when inferior in size, etc.; particularly a male animal poorly suited for breeding.
4. (countable, derogatory) One who labors hard and lives meanly; a mean fellow.
5. (countable, derogatory, slang) One who is incompetent or unable to complete easy tasks.
6. (countable, slang) One not on the first team of players; a substitute.
7. (Internet, countable, derogatory, slang) A player who whines when outmatched by other players, sometimes by blaming the game mechanics or even accusing the other players of cheating.

Verb

1. (transitive) To rub hard; to wash with rubbing; usually, to rub with a wet brush, or with something coarse or rough, for the purpose of cleaning or brightening
2. (intransitive) To rub anything hard, especially with a wet brush; to scour
3. (figuratively, intransitive) To be diligent and penurious
4. (transitive) To call off a scheduled event; to cancel.
5. (transitive) To eliminate or to correct data from a set of records to bring it inline with other similar datasets
6. To move a recording tape back and forth with a scrubbing motion to produce a scratching sound, or to do so by a similar use of a control on an editing system.
7. To maneuver the play position on a media editing system by using a scroll bar or touch-based interface.

Noun

1. An instance of scrubbing.
2. A cancellation.
3. A worn-out brush.
4. One who scrubs.
5. That which scrubs.
6. That which scrubs.
7. (in-plural) Clothing worn while performing surgery.
8. (broadly, in-plural) Any medical uniform consisting of a short-sleeved shirt and pants (trousers).
9. (obsolete, slang) Informal attire or dress code; morning dress

Synonyms

rub

scour

wash

🧽

wipe

brush

thicket

scrape

bush

rub in

clean

polish

🇵🇱

mop

cleanse

chaparral

swab

undergrowth

cancel

abrade

burnish

brushwood

scouring

rub vigorously

scrubby

scratch

chafe

call off

forest

exfoliate

buff

smear

strip

scrub up

scrubbing

shrub

jungle

grind

mongrel

shrubs

break in

brake

abrogate

cancellation

beggarly

graze

grate

frazzle

bushes

bathe

abject

fray

Translations

frotter

scheuern

strofinare

Gestrüpp

matorral

esfregar

fregar

🧽

schrubben

maquis

récurer

frotar

estregar

Gebüsch

boscaglia

عيص

Pronounced as (IPA)

/skɹʌb/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: scrobben

In summary

Late Middle English in the sense of "stunted tree," a variant of shrub, possibly under Old Norse influence.