rub

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English rubben; 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.

noun

1. An act of rubbing.
   Give that lamp a good rub and see if any genies come out.
2. A difficulty or problem.
   '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
   1. A mixture of spices applied to meat before it is barbecued.
6. (UK, naval slang) A loan.

verb

1. (transitive) To move (one object) while maintaining contact with another object over some area, with pressure and friction.
   1536 (originally published, the quote if from a later edited version of unknown date), Thomas Elyot, The Castel of Helth It shall be expedient, after that body is cleaned, to rub the body with a coarse linen cloth.
   I rubbed the cloth over the glass.
   The cat rubbed itself against my leg.
   I rubbed my hands together for warmth.
2. (intransitive) To be rubbed against something.
   My shoes are beginning to rub.
3. (transitive) To spread a substance thinly over; to smear.
   meat rubbed with spices before barbecuing
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 creation a. 1716, Robert South, Man Created in God's Image
6. To hinder; to cross; to thwart.
7. (transitive, bowls) To touch the jack with the bowl.