tub

[ tuhb ]

noun

1. a bathtub.
2. a broad, round, open, wooden container, usually made of staves held together by hoops and fitted around a flat bottom.
3. any of various containers resembling or suggesting a tub:

   a tub for washing clothes.

4. the amount a tub will hold.
5. Informal. a short and fat person.
6. Nautical. an old, slow, or clumsy vessel.
7. British Informal. a bath in a bathtub.
8. Mining. an ore car; tram.
9. Military Slang. a two-seat aircraft, especially a trainer.

verb (used with object)

, tubbed, tub·bing.

1. to place or keep in a tub.
2. British Informal. to bathe in a bathtub.

verb (used without object)

, tubbed, tub·bing.

1. British Informal. to bathe oneself in a bathtub.
2. Informal. to undergo washing, especially without damage, as a fabric:

   This cotton print tubs well.

tub

/ tʌb /

noun

1. a low wide open container, typically round, originally one made of wood and used esp for washing: now made of wood, plastic, metal, etc, and used in a variety of domestic and industrial situations
2. a small plastic or cardboard container of similar shape for ice cream, margarine, etc
3. Also calledbathtub another word (esp US and Canadian) for bath 1
4. Also calledtubful the amount a tub will hold
5. a clumsy slow boat or ship
6. informal.
   (in rowing) a heavy wide boat used for training novice oarsmen
7. Also calledtramhutch
   1. a small vehicle on rails for carrying loads in a mine
   2. a container for lifting coal or ore up a mine shaft; skip

verb

1. informal.
   to wash (oneself or another) in a tub
2. tr to keep or put in a tub

Derived Forms

• ˈtubbable, adjective
• ˈtubber, noun

Other Words From

• tubba·ble adjective
• tubber noun
• tublike adjective
• under·tub noun
• un·tubbed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tub¹

1350–1400; Middle English tubbe (noun) < Middle Dutch tobbe; cognate with Middle Low German tubbe, tobbe

Word History and Origins

Origin of tub¹

C14: from Middle Dutch tubbe

Example Sentences

Read if you like: “Clean and Decent: The Fascinating History of the Bathroom and the Water-Closet,” by Lawrence Wright; any of the vintage tub accounts of Instagram; Victoria Magazine.

From New York Times

Here you can see him touting an alleged innovation in hot tub technology that the company had allegedly facilitated:

From Slate

He had been diagnosed with coronary artery disease and was found to have drowned in a hot tub.

From Salon

Rebecca says she was pressured to sit with Salah in a hot tub in his Monaco apartment where he sexually assaulted her.

From BBC

An 800g tub cost £14 and with two kids to feed, James and his partner were going through two and a half tubs a week, spending well over £100 a month.

From BBC