Learn 'Rub Elbows,' Other 'Rub' Expressions

01And now, words and their stories from VOA Learning English.

02Today, we are talking about the term rub.

03While this three-letter word is small, it should not be seen as unimportant.

04In fact, rub carries a lot of meaning and can be used in many different situations.

05For starters, rub is a noun.

06One way it is used this way is in cooking.

07A rub is a collection of dry seasonings that can be added to meat, tofu, or vegetables before cooking.

08Rub can also mean something problematic.

09If I ask, what's the rub?

10I am asking, what's the problem?

11This expression is very informal.

12Rub is also a verb.

13For example, I might rub my head if I have a headache.

14Or I may rub my shoulder if it hurts.

15And if something really hurts, I might rub in some medicine to help reduce the pain.

16But to rub something in also has another meaning.

17An idiomatic one.

18If you rub something in, you keep reminding someone of something unpleasant.

19This is a very common expression, so let's hear it used in a conversation.

20Rub is a very common expression.

21Hey, I had fun playing basketball yesterday.

22Your team almost won.

23Almost.

24It was fun.

25I got a great workout.

26What was the score again?

27Rub is a very common expression.

28Okay, okay.

29Stop rubbing it in.

30Your team beat mine by a lot.

31Rubbing something in is similar to rubbing someone's nose in something.

32In the example we just heard, one man rubs his friend's nose in a loss at a basketball game.

33When we rub someone's nose in something, we remind them that they have failed or got something wrong.

34As a verb, rub is used in many other expressions.

35If you rub someone the wrong way, you cause that person to be angry or annoyed.

36It means you have irritated them, usually for something in your personality or behavior.

37You do not have to do anything specific to rub someone the wrong way.

38For example, the president of the company rubbed some of his employees the wrong way, with his direct way of speaking.

39Another expression is to rub elbows with someone.

40We use this expression to describe being at the same event as someone or simply being around them.

41But we don't generally use it for interactions with our close friends.

42Often, the people we rub elbows with are famous, important, or influential.

43For example, I rubbed elbows with some famous people at the mayor's birthday celebration.

44Another way to use the verb rub is in the expression to rub salt in the wound.

45This means you make a bad situation worse for someone else.

46Let's say you know someone who loses their job.

47When they tell you that news, you remind them that they still owe you money.

48You have just rubbed salt in the wound.

49Ouch.

50This is similar to kicking someone when they are down.

51Another use of the word rub is in the phrasal verb rub together.

52We use this with other words to say that we lack something.

53For example, if I don't have two brain cells to rub together, I can't think straight.

54I'm confused.

55Or if you don't have two dimes to rub together, you have no money.

56You are broke.

57You could also say pennies or quarters, as long as they are coins.

58Our last expression is to rub something out.

59That means you get rid of it.

60And sometimes we use it in a rather violent situation.

61If a bad person rubs someone out, they do away with them.

62In other words, they actually kill them.

63And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.

64Until next time, I'm Ana Mateo.

65Thank you.

66Thank you.

67Thank you.

68Thank you.

69Thank you.