rubbed
/ˈɹʌbd/
rubbed is the simple past and past participle of rub.
Meaning of rub
Verb
rub (third-person singular simple present rubs, present participle rubbing, simple past and past participle rubbed)
- To move (one object) while maintaining contact with another object over some area, with pressure and friction.
- I rubbed the cloth over the glass.
- To be rubbed against something.
- My shoes are beginning to rub.
- To spread a substance thinly over; to smear.
- meat rubbed with spices before barbecuing
- To move or pass with difficulty.
- to rub through woods, as huntsmen
- To scour; to burnish; to polish; to brighten; to cleanse; often with up or over.
- to rub up silver
- 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...
Adjective
rubbed (not comparable)
- Having had a substance applied through rubbing.
Phrases with rubbed
- rubbed in
- rubbed up
- rubbed off
- rubbed away
- rubbed down
- rubbed along
- rubbed it in
- rubbed up on
- rubbed works
- rubbed elbows
- rubbed off on
- rubbed one off
15 more phrasesFewer phrases
- rubbed one out
- rubbed shoulders
- rubbed up against
- rubbed one's hands
- rubbed oneself off
- rubbed up the wrong way
- rubbed salt in the wound
- rubbed someone's face in
- rubbed someone's nose in
- rubbed one's hands together
- rubbed the fear of God into
- rubbed someone the wrong way
- rubbed salt in someone's wounds
- rubbed someone up the wrong way
- rubbed one's face with a brass candlestick
Words that rhyme with rubbed
Questions about rubbed
- What does rubbed mean?
- Rubbed means having had a substance applied through rubbing.
- What is rubbed the simple past and past participle of?
- Rubbed is the simple past and past participle of rub.
- What part of speech is rubbed?
- Rubbed is an adjective.
- How do you pronounce rubbed?
- Rubbed is pronounced /ˈɹʌbd/.
Words near rubbed in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: rubbed (page history and authors); rub (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-rubbed.ogg.
Cite this entry: “rubbed.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/rubbed. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.