scrub

UK: /ˈskrʌb/ US: /skrʌb/ ,(skrub)

Inflections of 'scrub' (v): (⇒ conjugate)

scrubs

v 3rd person singular

scrubbing

v pres p

scrubbed

v past

scrubbed

v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

scrub¹ /skrʌb/   v., scrubbed, scrub•bing, n. 
v. 

1. to rub hard with a brush, cloth, etc., in washing: [~ + object]
   to scrub your face.
   [no object]
   Be sure to scrub hard with a brush or the dirt won't come off.
2. to remove (dirt, etc.) from something by hard rubbing while washing:
   [~ + object] to scrub grime from the walls.
3. Chemistry to remove (impure parts) from a gas by chemical means:
   [~ + object] to scrub sulfur dioxide from smokestack gas.
4. [Informal.] to cancel or postpone, as a rocket launch:
   [~ + object] The mission had to be scrubbed because of a computer malfunction.

n. [countable]

5. an act or instance of scrubbing.

scrub•ber, n. [countable]

scrub² /skrʌb/   n. 

1. Botany low trees or shrubs thought of as a group:
   [uncountable] jackals hiding in the scrub.
2. Botany [uncountable] a large area covered with low trees and shrubs.
3. [countable] [Sports.] a player not on the first-string team.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

scrub¹  (skrub), v., scrubbed, scrub•bing, n. 
v.t. 

1. to rub hard with a brush, cloth, etc., or against a rough surface in washing.
2. to subject to friction;
   rub.
3. to remove (dirt, grime, etc.) from something by hard rubbing while washing.
4. Chemistry to remove (impurities or undesirable components) from a gas by chemical means, as sulfur dioxide from smokestack gas or carbon dioxide from exhaled air in life-support packs.
5. Aerospace to cancel or postpone (a space flight or part of a mission):
   Ground control scrubbed the spacewalk.
6. Slang Terms to do away with;
   cancel:
   Scrub your vacation plans--there's work to do!

v.i. 

7. to cleanse something by hard rubbing.
8. to cleanse one's hands and arms as a preparation to performing or assisting in surgery (often fol. by up).

n. 

9. an act or instance of scrubbing.
10. Aerospace a canceled or postponed space flight, launching, scheduled part of a space mission, etc.
11. something, as a cosmetic preparation, used for scrubbing.

• Middle Dutch schrobben
• Middle English scrobben (noun, nominal) 1300–50

scrub′ba•ble, adj. 

scrub²  (skrub), n. 

1. Botany low trees or shrubs collectively.
2. Botany a large area covered with low trees and shrubs, as the Australian bush.
3. Animal Husbandry a domestic animal of mixed or inferior breeding;
   mongrel.
4. a small or insignificant person.
5. anything undersized or inferior.
6. Sport a player not belonging to the varsity or regular team;
   a player who is not first-string.

adj. 

7. small, undersized, or stunted.
8. inferior or insignificant.
9. Botany abounding in or covered with low trees and shrubs:
   They rode through scrub country.

• Scandinavian; compare dialect, dialectal Danish skrub brushwood; see shrub¹
• Middle English 1350–1400

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

scrub / skrʌb/ verb (scrubs, scrubbing, scrubbed)

1. to rub (a surface) hard, with or as if with a brush, soap, and water, in order to clean it
2. to remove (dirt), esp by rubbing with a brush and water
3. (intransitive) followed by up: (of a surgeon) to wash the hands and arms thoroughly before operating
4. (transitive) to purify (a vapour or gas) by removing impurities
5. (transitive) to delete or cancel

noun

1. the act of or an instance of scrubbing

Etymology: 14th Century: from Middle Low German schrubben, or Middle Dutch schrobben

scrub / skrʌb/ noun

1. vegetation consisting of stunted trees, bushes, and other plants growing in an arid area
2. (as modifier): scrub vegetation
3. an area of arid land covered with such vegetation
4. an animal of inferior breeding or condition
5. (as modifier): a scrub bull
6. a small or insignificant person
7. anything stunted or inferior
8. a player not in the first team
9. the scrub ⇒ a remote place, esp one where contact with people can be avoided

adjective

1. small, stunted, or inferior
2. (of a player) not in the first team
3. (of a team) composed of such players

Etymology: 16th Century: variation of shrub¹