the rub

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

It's the X-ray stat, the one that shows how good teams are before hot finishing streaks and the rub of the green come into play.

From BBC

That’s the rub right there: No one knows for sure what’s coming next.

From Slate

Such is the rub you may find yourself in with iconoclastic Spanish director Albert Serra’s “Afternoons of Solitude,” his first nonfiction film, an unflinching gaze at bullfighting, its hushed, ornate rituals and gruesome realities.

From Los Angeles Times

Any inkling that Wigan simply had enjoyed the rub of the green in the first half was ended as Rowe weaved her way in for a try of her own having been laser-focused with the boot during the opening stages.

From BBC

"Unfortunately we have just not had the rub of the green this season," Houghton added.

From BBC

Related Words

• barrier 
• bug 
• crunch 
• difficulty 
• disadvantage 
• drawback 
• glitch 
• hitch 
• holdup 
• hurdle 
• impediment 
• inconvenience 
• obstacle 
• stumbling block