nub
Americannoun
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nubs
plural
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the point, gist, or heart of something.
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a knob or protuberance.
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a lump or small piece.
a nub of coal; a nub of pencil.
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a small mass of fibers produced on a card, dyed brilliant colors, and introduced into yarn during the spinning process.
noun
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a small lump or protuberance
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a small piece or chunk
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the point or gist
the nub of a story
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a small fibrous knot in yarn
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of nub
1585–95; < Low German, Middle Low German knubbe; cf. knob
Explanation
A nub is a little piece of something, especially one that sticks out. The raised rubber buttons on your TV remote control are nubs. Tiny lumps or bits are nubs, like the nubs on tree branches that will become buds in the spring, or the nubs on a crocheted blanket, little woven bumps. Another kind of nub is the heart or essence of something: one incriminating piece of evidence might be the nub of a judge's decision in a case. The "lump" meaning is older, stemming from knob, while the "essence" meaning dates from the nineteenth century.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
There lies the nub of the dilemma for Qatar and the five other Gulf states facing the brunt of the backlash from a war they tried to avert through diplomacy.
From Salon ● Mar. 21, 2026
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.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025
When resting, it appears as a small white nub between their eyes, but when raised, it becomes a hooked, barbed organ covered in teeth.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2025
He and his father were able to find the nub end of the bench seating at the top of the stadium, directly across from the entrance to the antiquated wooden press box.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 5, 2024
I didn’t have the first nub growing out of my face yet, and my hair was long and unruly.
From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith
She would run her fingers along the pointed nubs of the beans — almost like someone would press prayer beads between their fingertips — and stare at the black-eyed Susans coming up in her backyard.
From Salon ● Sep. 4, 2023
Huge trees lay on the ground, their stumps reduced to nubs.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 2, 2023
The talks went on for so long that the red hazard lights ran out of power, and the dozens of candles handed out to attendees around Hour 2 had melted into nubs by Hour 3.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 4, 2023
South African ceramist Jabulile Nala casts traditional beer pots whose glistening dark exteriors are embellished with symmetrical arrangements of nubs and gashes, echoing those etched into human skin by some African tribes.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 9, 2022
The nubs wiggled like the remnants of amputated wings.
From "Fablehaven" by Brandon Mull
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
