Did you know?
Sportswriters often use the word drub when a team they are covering is drubbed—that is, routed—but the term’s history reveals that it wasn’t always a sporting word. When drub was first used in English, it referred to a method of punishment that involved beating the soles of the accused’s feet with a stick or cudgel. The term was apparently brought to England in the 17th century by travelers who reported observing the punitive practice abroad. The ultimate origin of drub is uncertain, but the etymological culprit may be the Arabic word ḍaraba, meaning “to beat.” Over the centuries, drub developed the additional milder, and now more common, meanings of “to berate critically” and “to defeat decisively.”
Examples of drub in a Sentence
Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 19 Mar. 2026
Mansfield races past Byron Nelson after slow start Mansfield only scored 5 points in the first quarter, but outscored Trophy Club Byron Nelson by 33 the rest of the way as the Tigers drubbed the Bobcats 61-34 in a Class 6A Division II bi-district game on Tuesday at Thomas Coliseum in Haltom City.
—Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 25 Feb. 2026
With all eight of those players available, the Heat previously drubbed the Hawks and Clippers and beat the Suns by six and the Bucks by three.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 25 Feb. 2026
The Americans drubbed Poulin’s team without her, perhaps taking some suspense out of the likely rematch between these teams in the gold-medal game next week.
—Alex Kirshner, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for drub
Cite this Entry
“Drub.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drub. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.
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drub
verb
