rubble

[ ruhb-uhl roo-buhl ]

noun

1. broken bits and pieces of anything, as that which is demolished:

   Bombing reduced the town to rubble.

2. any solid substance, as ice, in irregularly broken pieces.
3. rough fragments of broken stone, formed by geological processes, in quarrying, etc., and sometimes used in masonry.
4. masonry built of rough fragments of broken stone.

rubble

/ ˈrʌbəl /

noun

1. fragments of broken stones, bricks, etc
2. any fragmented solid material, esp the debris from ruined buildings
3. quarrying the weathered surface layer of rock
4. Also calledrubblework masonry constructed of broken pieces of rock, stone, etc

Derived Forms

• ˈrubbly, adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of rubble¹

1350–1400; Middle English rubel, robil < ?; rubbish

Word History and Origins

Origin of rubble¹

C14 robyl ; perhaps related to Middle English rubben to rub, or to rubbish

Example Sentences

In a video shared by the president, emergency workers could be seen sifting through the rubble as they continued to search for victims on Tuesday morning.

From BBC

Rescuers have so far pulled 86 people from the rubble alive but 16 are known to have died, Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa said.

From BBC

The agency, quoted by AFP, said many of the dead were women and children, with dozens stilled feared to be under the rubble.

From BBC

"Soon afterwards the thieves crawled back along the 40ft tunnel. They escaped through a back window leaving eight tons of rubble from the tunnel behind."

From BBC

When the torrent hit the cement bridge that connected the two parts of the village, it turned it to rubble.

From BBC

Related Words

• debris