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dubbin

[duhb-in]
|

noun

a mixture of tallow and oil used in dressing leather.
Also dubbing.

Origin of dubbin

1815–25; variant of gerund of dub1 (in the sense “rubbing or smoothing leather or wood”)
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for dubbin

Historical Examples of dubbin

  • We are almost out of dubbin, which is in great demand for light.

    The Secrets of a Kuttite

    Edward O. Mousley

  • I've seen that dubbin boiling on the beach; there's tallow in it, and tar and resin as well.

    Wanderers

    Knut Hamsun

  • “Had it along with the dubbin just before breakfast,” said Isaac.

    Mad

    George Manville Fenn

  • That was probably due to a button that I had sewn on to the neck of my pyjama jacket by the uncertain light of dubbin oil!

    The Secrets of a Kuttite

    Edward O. Mousley

  • We also fry our meat in cocoa-nut oil, in dubbin, and in salad oil—if we can "find" any.

British Dictionary definitions for dubbin

dubbin

dubbing

noun

British a greasy mixture of tallow and oil applied to leather to soften it and make it waterproof

Word Origin for dubbin

C18: from dub to dress leather; see dub 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012