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Synonyms

pub

1 American  
[puhb] / pʌb /

noun

  1. a bar or tavern.

pub. 2 American  

abbreviation

  1. public.

  2. publication.

  3. published.

  4. publisher.

  5. publishing.

pub. 1 British  

abbreviation

  1. public

  2. publication

  3. published

  4. publisher

  5. publishing

"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
pub 2 British  
/ pʌb /

noun

  1. Formal name: public house.  a building with a bar and one or more public rooms licensed for the sale and consumption of alcoholic drink, often also providing light meals

  2. a hotel

"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

verb

  1. informal (intr) to visit a pub or pubs (esp in the phrase go pubbing )

"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

Etymology

Origin of pub

First recorded in 1855–60; short for public house

Explanation

A pub is a bar or tavern that serves food and often acts as a community gathering place. People visit pubs to eat lunch, to drink beer, or to play darts with their friends. Pub is a shortened form of public house that dates from 1859. In the sixteenth century, a public house was first "any building open to the public," and then "an inn that sells food and drink." Today, the word pub is more or less synonymous with tavern — both are primarily places to drink beer, wine, or spirits, though a pub (especially in Great Britain) is seen as vital to its neighborhood, a cozy place to gather.

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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.

In her younger years she enjoyed going out and socialising with her friends in the local pub.

From BBC • Apr. 21, 2026

More than 5,000 miles away, in the pub, they’ll watch the Coachella livestream as a California crowd steps side-to-side to a dance named after them.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 15, 2026

For 2026 trips, guests will stay at the Old Rectory in Symondsbury steps from the village pub.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 11, 2026

The pub, which will accommodate up to 60 customers, will not operate in store, but will be in separate premises next door.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2026

Opposite, set in a diagonal across a street corner, the wide-open double doors of a pub suggested a theater stage.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan

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.