Learn 'Rub Elbows,' Other 'Rub' Expressions

And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.

Today we are talking about the term “rub.” While this three-letter word is small, it should not be seen as unimportant. In fact, "rub" carries a lot of meaning and can be used in many different situations.

For starters, "rub" is a noun.

One way it is used this way is in cooking. A rub is a collection of dry seasonings that can be added to meat, tofu or vegetables before cooking.

"Rub" can also mean something problematic. If I ask, "What's the rub?" I am asking “What's the problem?” (This expression is very informal.)

“Rub” is also a verb.

For example, I might rub my head if I have a headache. Or I may rub my shoulder if it hurts. And if something really hurts, I might rub in some medicine to help reduce the pain.

But to rub something in also has another meaning – an idiomatic one. If you rub something in, you keep reminding someone of something unpleasant. This is a very common expression. So, let's hear it used in a conversation.

A: Hey, I had fun playing basketball yesterday. Your team almost won. Almost.

B: It was fun. I got a great workout.

A: What was the score again?

B: Okay, okay. Stop rubbing it in! Your team beat mine by ... a lot!

Rubbing something in is similar to rubbing someone's nose in something. In the example we just heard, one man rubs his friend's nose in a loss at a basketball game. When we rub someone's nose in something, we remind them that they have failed or got something wrong.

As a verb, “rub” is used in many other expressions.

If you rub someone the wrong way, you cause that person to be angry or annoyed. It means you have irritated them, usually for something in your personality or behavior. You do not have to do anything specific to rub someone the wrong way. For example, the president of the company rubbed some of his employees the wrong way with his direct way of speaking.

Another expression is to rub elbows with someone. We use this expression to describe being at the same event as someone or simply being around them. But we don't generally use it for interactions with our close friends. Often, the people we rub elbows with are famous, important, or influential. For example, I rubbed elbows with some famous people at the mayor's birthday celebration.

Another way to use the verb “rub” is in the expression to rub salt in the wound. This means you make a bad situation worse for someone else. Let's say you know someone who loses their job. When they tell you that news, you remind them that they still owe you money. You have just rubbed salt in the wound. Ouch! This is similar to kicking someone when they are down.

Another use of the word “rub” is in the phrasal verb rub together. We use this with other words to say that we lack something. For example, if I don't have two brain cells to rub together, I can't think straight. I'm confused. Or, if you don't have two dimes to rub together, you have no money. You are broke! (You could also say pennies or quarters -- as long as they are coins.)

Our last expression is to rub something out. That means you get rid of it. And sometimes we use it in a rather violent situation. If a bad person rubs someone out, they do away with them. In other words, they actually kill them!

And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories!

Until next time ... I'm Anna Matteo.

Anna Matteo wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English.

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informal -adj. characteristic of or appropriate to ordinary, casual, or familiar use

idiom -n. an expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its separate words but must be learned as a whole

idiomatic -adj. of, relating to, or conforming to idiom

irritated -adj. to be impatient, angry, or displeased

personality -n. the whole collection of individual emotions and behavior that make one person different from others

confused -adj. being disordered or mixed up

broke -adj. having no money