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Synonyms

the rub

Idioms  

  1. The difficulty or problem, as in We'd love to come but there's the rub—we can't get reservations. This expression may come from lawn bowling, where rub refers to an unevenness in the ground that impedes the ball. Its most famous use is in one of Hamlet's soliloquies (Hamlet, 3:1): “To sleep, perchance to dream—ay, there's the rub, For in that sleep of death what dreams may come ... Must give us pause.” [Late 1500s]

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.

Although the ability to make snow has been a game changer for resorts in North America, here’s the rub: Snowmaking works only when it’s cold.

From Slate • Apr. 11, 2026

But here’s the rub: ByteDance will still own the algorithm and license it to the joint venture.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026

Public-market investors had visibility into the 2000 bubble, but much less today—and there’s the rub.

From Barron's • Dec. 12, 2025

That’s where the rub came for Sarmiento and other Dodgers fans.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 4, 2025

But the rub is that there are two ways he can win and only one way you can win.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos

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.