Word origins - 2ed. J. Ayto. 2005.
Rubble — Rub ble, n. [From an assumed Old French dim. of robe See {Rubbish}.] 1. Water worn or rough broken stones; broken bricks, etc., used in coarse masonry, or to fill up between the facing courses of walls. [1913 Webster] Inside [the wall] there was… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
rubble — [rub′əl] n. [ME robel; akin to RUBBISH, RUB] 1. rough, irregular, loose fragments of rock, broken from larger bodies either by natural processes or artificially, as by blasting 2. masonry made of rubble; rubblework 3. debris from buildings, etc … English World dictionary
rubble — (n.) c.1400, from Anglo Norm. *robel bits of broken stone, probably related to RUBBISH (Cf. rubbish), but also possibly from O.Fr. robe (see ROB (Cf. rob)) … Etymology dictionary
rubble — ► NOUN ▪ rough fragments of stone, brick, concrete, etc., especially as the debris from the demolition of buildings. DERIVATIVES rubbly adjective. ORIGIN perhaps from Old French robe spoils ; compare with RUBBISH(Cf. ↑rubbishy) … English terms dictionary
Rubble — For other uses, see Rubble (disambiguation). Rubble is broken stone, of irregular size, shape and texture. This word is closely connected in derivation with rubbish , which was formerly also applied to what we now call rubble . Rubble naturally… … Wikipedia
rubble — noun ADJECTIVE ▪ building (esp. BrE) … OF RUBBLE ▪ heap, pile ▪ What was once a house was now a crumbling heap of rubble. VERB + RUBBLE … Collocations dictionary
rubble — [[t]rʌ̱b(ə)l[/t]] 1) N UNCOUNT When a building is destroyed, the pieces of brick, stone, or other materials that remain are referred to as rubble. Thousands of bodies are still buried under the rubble... Entire suburbs have been reduced to rubble … English dictionary
rubble — n. 1) a heap, pile of rubble 2) (misc.) to reduce smt. to rubble * * * [ rʌb(ə)l] pile of rubble (misc.) to reduce smt. to rubble a heap … Combinatory dictionary
rubble — I. noun Etymology: Middle English robyl Date: 14th century 1. a. broken fragments (as of rock) resulting from the decay or destruction of a building < fortifications knocked into rubble C. S. Forester > b. a miscellaneous confused mass or group… … New Collegiate Dictionary
rubble — rub|ble [ rʌbl ] noun uncount broken pieces of stone and brick from buildings, walls, etc. that have been destroyed: reduce something to rubble (=destroy it completely): A bomb reduced the houses to rubble … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
rubble — UK [ˈrʌb(ə)l] / US noun [uncountable] broken pieces of stone and brick from buildings, walls etc that have been destroyed reduce something to rubble (= destroy it completely): A bomb reduced the houses to rubble … English dictionary
