nub

Or knub

[nuhb]

noun

1. the point, gist, or heart of something.

2. a knob or protuberance.

3. a lump or small piece.

   a nub of coal; a nub of pencil.

4. a small mass of fibers produced on a card, dyed brilliant colors, and introduced into yarn during the spinning process.

nub

/ nʌb /

noun

1. a small lump or protuberance

2. a small piece or chunk

3. the point or gist

   the nub of a story

4. a small fibrous knot in yarn

Other Word Forms

• nubbly adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of nub¹

1585–95; < Low German, Middle Low German knubbe; knob

Word History and Origins

Origin of nub¹

C16: variant of knub, from Middle Low German knubbe _knob

Example Sentences

He jotted down this bon mot with his pencil nub.

Read more on Literature

Roz carefully opened the lid and examined its contents: a collection of farming magazines, a pair of leather gloves, a pencil nub.

Read more on Literature

But voices were growing for stronger action, saying the monarch was failing to get at the nub of the problem: in the public’s eye, the disgraced prince continues to live…well, like a prince.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

When resting, it appears as a small white nub between their eyes, but when raised, it becomes a hooked, barbed organ covered in teeth.

Read more on Science Daily

But civil discourse has been ground down to a useless nub at this point, and a presidential candidate can share crude jokes about his opponent with barely a blip in the news cycle.

Read more on Salon

Related Words

• crux 
• upshot