What does "cube" mean?
A regular polyhedron having six identical square faces.
Cube
/kjuːb/ adj, noun, verb, slang
adj, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A regular polyhedron having six identical square faces.
- Grammar: cube is listed as adj, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: third power, argument, block, blocks.
- Useful contrasts: rubber ball, ball, bolas.
- Usage evidence: I like to put an ice cube into my coffee, because it's usually too hot.
How to use "cube"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "cube" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "cube" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "cube" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "cube" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "cube" is acting as adj, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "third power" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "cube", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A regular polyhedron having six identical square faces.
"When the math teacher is teaching the class about cubes, he asks them to imagine a cardboard box whose width, length, and height are all the same."
- 2 A cubicle, especially one of those found in offices.
"My co-worker annoys me by throwing things over the walls of my cube."
- 3 a block in the (approximate) shape of a cube wordnet
- 4 Any object more or less in the form of a cube.
"A: One cube or two? B: Oh, no sugar for me, thanks."
- 5 any of several tropical American woody plants of the genus Lonchocarpus whose roots are used locally as a fish poison and commercially as a source of rotenone wordnet
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 The third power of a number, value, term or expression.
"The cube of 2 is 8."
- 7 the product of three equal terms wordnet
- 8 A data structure consisting of a three-dimensional array; a data cube.
- 9 a three-dimensional shape with six square or rectangular sides wordnet
- 10 A Rubik's cube style puzzle, not necessarily in the shape of a cube.
- 11 a hexahedron with six equal squares as faces wordnet
- 12 Clipping of cubic inch(es). abbreviation, alt-of, clipping, informal
"As if the 383 weren't already a roaring beast, in 1972 they bored it out some more, bringing it up to 400 cubes. This 400-cube monster could launch a land yacht like the Plymouth Fury from zero to sixty in under ten seconds."
- 13 An extremely socially conventional or conservative person, moreso than even a square. dated
Verb
- 1 To raise to the third power; to determine the result of multiplying by itself twice. transitive
"Three cubed can be written as 3³, and equals twenty-seven."
- 2 raise to the third power wordnet
- 3 To form into the shape of a cube. transitive
- 4 cut into cubes wordnet
- 5 To cut into cubes. transitive
"Cube the ham right after adding the curry to the rice."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 To use a Rubik's cube. intransitive
"He likes to cube now and then."
Adjective
- 1 Used in the names of units of area formed by multiplying a unit of length by itself twice. not-comparable, postpositional
"Beautiful peepshows with hand-coloured engravings by Martin Englebrecht, 1684-1756, were produced in Augsburg about 1740. The box, about six inches cube, contained slots to take four cut-out scenes, the front of the box had another cut-out, and the back was painted with a landscape, making six 'curtains' in all."
Example
"I like to put an ice cube into my coffee, because it's usually too hot."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "cube"?
Common synonyms include: third power, argument, block, blocks, brick, cake.
How do you use "cube" in a sentence?
I like to put an ice cube into my coffee, because it's usually too hot.
How do you pronounce "cube"?
Pronounced /kjuːb/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Old French cube, from Latin cubus, from Ancient Greek κύβος (kúbos).
Etymology 2
Clipped form of cubicle (with intentional reference to their common shape per cube, etymology 1), which from Latin cubiculum (“a small bedchamber or lounge”), from cubare (“to lie down”).