stub

¹ American  

[stuhb] / stʌb /

noun

1. a short projecting part.

2. a short remaining piece, as of a pencil, candle, or cigar.

3. (in a checkbook, receipt book, etc.) the inner end of each leaf, for keeping a record of the content of the part filled out and torn away.

4. the returned portion of a ticket.

5. the end of a fallen tree, shrub, or plant left fixed in the ground; stump.

6. something having a short, blunt shape, especially a short-pointed, blunt pen.

7. stub nail.

8. something having the look of incomplete or stunted growth, as a horn of an animal.

9. Bridge. a part-score.

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verb (used with object)

stubbed, stubbing

1. to strike accidentally against a projecting object.

   I stubbed my toe against the step.

2. to extinguish the burning end of (a cigarette or cigar) by crushing it against a solid object (often followed byout ).

   He stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray.

3. to clear of stubs, as land.

4. to dig up by the roots; grub up (roots).

stub ² American  

[stuhb] / stʌb /

adjective

1. stocky; squat.

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stub British  

/ stʌb /

noun

1. a short piece remaining after something has been cut, removed, etc

   a cigar stub

2. the residual piece or section of a receipt, ticket, cheque, etc

3. the part of a cheque, postal order, receipt, etc, detached and retained as a record of the transaction Also called (in Britain) counterfoil

4. any short projection or blunted end

5. the stump of a tree or plant

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verb

1. to strike (one's toe, foot, etc) painfully against a hard surface

2. (usually foll by out) to extinguish (a cigarette or cigar) by pressing the end against a surface

3. to clear (land) of stubs

4. to dig up (the roots) of (a tree or bush)

Other Word Forms

• stubber noun

Etymology

Origin of stub¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English noun stubb(e), Old English stybb, stubb, stebb “tree stump”; cognate with Middle Low German, Middle Dutch stubbe, Old Norse stubbi; akin to Old Norse stūfr “stump”; the verb is derivative of the noun

Origin of stub²

First recorded in 1705–15; special use of stub ¹

Explanation

The small remainder of something is a stub. If you sharpen your favorite pencil obsessively, soon you'll be left with just a stub. Anything that's leftover or unusually short can be a stub, from the ticket stub you're handed in the theater to your dog's little stub of a tail. As a verb, stub most often means "strike painfully against something," and it's toes that you most often stub: "Put your shoes on before you run around in the yard, or you'll stub your toe again!"

Example Sentences

For many people, a year-end pay stub will have all the numbers a tax professional needs to determine which pay is eligible for the tax break, Steber said.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 14, 2026

But the definition of what kinds of overtime pay qualify is much trickier than just looking at the overtime line on a pay stub.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

Heaven forbid any of these people stub a toe.

From Salon • Jan. 9, 2026

When you touch a hot pan, stub your toe, or bump your head, your nervous system instantly delivers an “Ow!” that prompts you to pull back before more damage occurs.

From Science Daily • Oct. 10, 2025

Without losing stride, Sierra pulled out her chalk, now only a stub, and dragged it along the trees she passed.

From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older