What does "tub" mean?
A flat-bottomed vessel, of width similar to or greater than its height, used for storing or packing things, or for washing things in.
Tub
/tʌb/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A flat-bottomed vessel, of width similar to or greater than its height, used for storing or packing things, or for washing things in.
- Grammar: tub is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: bathtub, aquamanile, argosy, auto.
- Useful contrasts: shower.
- Usage evidence: How much longer will it take for the tub to fill?
How to use "tub"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "tub" 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 "tub" 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 "tub" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "tub" 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 "tub" is acting as 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 "bathtub" 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 "tub", 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 flat-bottomed vessel, of width similar to or greater than its height, used for storing or packing things, or for washing things in.
"He bought a tub of lard to roast the potatoes in."
- 2 a relatively large open container that you fill with water and use to wash the body wordnet
- 3 The contents or capacity of such a vessel.
"She added a tub of margarine to the stew."
- 4 a large open vessel for holding or storing liquids wordnet
- 5 A bathtub.
"Teach me to love my morning tub, / In waters cold to splash and rub; / O, grant my Turkish towel may flood / Its virtues through my soul and blood."
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 the amount that a tub will hold wordnet
- 7 A slow-moving craft. informal
"But, with any ships in the Baltic Fleet that were worth sending - and some that probably weren't worth sending anyway - having already been dispatched, this gave him the perfect excuse to start rounding up old, obsolete vessels which had been rejected in the first place as being old tubs and designated by some of the less-kind officers as the "Sink-by-Themselves Squadron"."
- 8 Any structure shaped like a tub, such as a certain old form of pulpit, a short broad boat, etc. derogatory, humorous
"All being took up and busied, some in pulpits and some in tubs, in the grand work of preaching and holding forth."
- 9 A small cask.
"a tub of gin"
- 10 Any of various historically designated quantities of goods to be sold by the tub (butter, oysters, etc).
- 11 A box or bucket in which coal or ore is sent up a shaft.
"The Winchburgh Shale Line is of 2 ft. 6 in. gauge. The surface trucks or tubs are cuboidal metal boxes mounted on unsprung four-wheeled chassis."
- 12 A sweating in a tub; a tub fast. obsolete
"tubs and baths; bring down rose-cheeked youth To the tub-fast and the diet"
- 13 A corpulent or obese person. slang
"Donald tells him to be more realistic. Take those two girls over there, for example. One's a zitface and the other's a tub, so they'd be perfect for them."
- 14 The bare body shell of an automobile (minus the doors, hood, trunk lid, fenders, etc.) which is lowered onto the chassis at the time of assembly, or in the case of modern unibody designed vehicles, is itself a monocoque around which the rest of the vehicle is built.
"Every street or race car McLaren has built since 1981 uses a carbon fiber tub. Now, McLaren will make them in-house."
Verb
- 1 To plant, set, or store in a tub. transitive
"to tub a plant"
- 2 To bathe in a tub. ambitransitive
"February 1, 1873, Meredith Townsend and Richard Holt Hutton (editors), "Change of Air and Scene", in The Spectator Don't we all "tub" in England?"
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"How much longer will it take for the tub to fill?"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "tub"?
Common synonyms include: bathtub, aquamanile, argosy, auto, autocar, automatic dishwasher.
How do you use "tub" in a sentence?
How much longer will it take for the tub to fill?
How do you pronounce "tub"?
Pronounced /tʌb/.
Etymology
From Middle English tubbe, tobbe, from Middle Dutch tubbe or Middle Low German tubbe, tobbe, further etymology unknown. Considered to be unrelated to tube.