nub en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /nʌb/ (General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
- (Australia) audio
- /nʊb/ (Ireland, Northern-England)
Etymology
Either directly from Middle Low German, or from knub, from a Middle Low German word (compare Low German Knubbel, Knobbel (“knot; lump”)). Compare knob.
Meanings
- (obsolete) The innermost section of a chrysalis in a silk cocoon.
- A small knob or lump.
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The essence or core of an issue, argument etc.
Though some CCS scholars have attempted to ground their practice on the “information hiding” view, such attempts are in my view doomed to fail, because the “information hiding” view denies the ultimate reality of code. As an alternative, I suggest that source code abstractions are virtualisations of metaphors. The nub of truth in the “information hiding” view is that programming abstractions are metaphorical. Abstractions provide a concrete framework for thinking about or conceptualising the behaviour of the machine. Some of these abstractions are so familiar that we have forgotten they are metaphors.
2026, Michael Falk, “Wikilambda the ultimate: the Wikimedia foundation’s search for the perfect language”, in AI & Society: Knowledge, Culture and Communication, →DOI:Very often, of course, the rambling and disjointed humorous story finishes with a nub, point, snapper, or whatever you like to call it.
1895 October 3, Mark Twain [pseudonym; Samuel Langhorne Clemens], “How to Tell a Story”, in How to Tell a Story and Other Essays, New York, N.Y.; London: Harper & Brothers, published 1898, →OCLC, page 4:But surely the males are no problem? Aha...no we're approaching the nub.
2000, Bill Oddie, Gripping Yarns, page 115:What do you think is the nub of the problem?
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(euphemistic, slang, vulgar) The clitoris.
“ — and then rub her nub with the bridge of your nose, right where the nerve will drive her straight to the ceiling!”
2007, Melissa MacNeal, Hot for It, →ISBN, page 198:He stroked her, using her movements to increase the pressure on her nub, catching her between his fingers.
2010, Beverly Rae, Wild Cat, →ISBN, page 81:When he used his fingers to rub her nub, he didn't have to wait anymore. She exploded for the second time that morning,...
2008, Arianna Hart, A Man for Marley, →ISBN, page 82:
- (colloquial) A pointing stick.
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A passage of Shakespearean blank verse.
To an audience a clever nub can pass for Shakespeare himself.
2013, Heathcote Williams, Nubbing, Cold Turkey Press:A nub is a passage of blank verse that Shakespearean actors have sometimes relied upon when they forget their lines. It doesn't have to make any sense, but it must sound plausible. To alert the other actors on stage that the speaker is in difficulty, the word nub is used in the first line.
2009, David Crystal, Walking English, Overlook Press, page 183:
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(informal) The genital tubercle.
nub theory
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| nubs | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
nubber · nublet · nubby · nublike · nubcake
Synonyms
spirit · inwardness · core · meat · nubbin · nuts and bolts · marrow · gist · heartstring · essence · nitty-gritty · guts · quintessence · sum · heart and soul · heartstrings · heart · soul · crux · stuff · pith · substance · moral of the story · crux · tenor · kernel · brass tacks · gravamen · gist · nub · drift · bowels · punctum saliens
Translations (20)
id tombol (small knob or lump) · de Pointe (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · pl bryła (small knob or lump) · cs podstata (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · mi ngako (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · cs hrudka (small knob or lump) · de Stückchen (small knob or lump) · no kjerne (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · de Kernpunkt (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · de Kern (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · de Noppe (small knob or lump) · id sari (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · id inti (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · de Klümpchen (small knob or lump) · ru суть (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · bg същност (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · bg бучка (small knob or lump) · pl gruda (small knob or lump) · pl sedno (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.) · cs jádro (essence or core of an issue, argument etc.)