rubbish
Americannoun
-
worthless, unwanted material that is rejected or thrown out; debris; litter; trash.
-
nonsense, as in writing or art.
sentimental rubbish.
- Synonyms:
- bosh, drivel, balderdash, rot
noun
-
worthless, useless, or unwanted matter
-
discarded or waste matter; refuse
-
foolish words or speech; nonsense
verb
Usage
What is rubbish? Rubbish is unwanted material, such as something you throw into a waste barrel, like a banana peel.Rubbish is also something that is considered nonsense and not worth anything, like an idea or a piece of art.In Australia and New Zealand, rubbish can mean to criticize or verbally attack. It’s often used informally.Example: Make sure you clean up all this rubbish before you leave tonight.
Etymology
Origin of rubbish
1350–1400; Middle English rubbes, rob ( b ) ous < ?; rubble
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.
This is despite the England international dismissing such talk as "a load of rubbish" in an interview with reporters just last week.
From BBC
That same courthouse, according to Leah, was cleared of rubbish as its inhabitants cheered: “Welcome to the Fox family.”
From Literature
“Oh, that old thing. It’s rubbish. We might as well use it for firewood.”
From Literature
What if I've got the world record, and everyone's so excited, and I think, oh that was rubbish.
From BBC
A dog owner in Italy has been accused of training their canine to dump bags of rubbish on the side of a road.
From BBC
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.
