rubble

1 of 2

noun

rub·​ble ˈrə-bəl 

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 of usually broken or worthless things

2

: waterworn or rough broken stones or bricks used in coarse masonry or in filling courses of walls

3

: rough stone as it comes from the quarry

rubble

2 of 2

verb

rubbled; rubbling ˈrə-b(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

: to reduce to rubble

Synonyms of rubble

Noun

• debris
• wreckage
• ruins
• remains
• ashes

Examples of rubble in a Sentence

Noun

Rescue workers managed to pull two injured people out of the rubble.

The earthquake reduced the whole town to rubble.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Crews have already broken ground, leaving rocks and rubble in the road for vehicles to dodge, said Joey Larson, a midwife in Beaver Dam who joined the meeting virtually. —Jordan Novet, CNBC, 25 Nov. 2025

In a 2002 interview with The Guardian, Kier noted that the hospital in Germany he was born in was bombed shortly after his birth; he and his mother were pulled out of the rubble in the aftermath. —Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 24 Nov. 2025

San José’s waterways are hideously un-scenic—views are of rubble and trash; the vegetation appears to be in a fight for its life. —Literary Hub, 21 Nov. 2025

Dozens of people were injured in the attack, 16 of them children, and more are still trapped under the rubble, Ukraine’s Interior Minister said. —Alexandra Banner, CNN Money, 19 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English robyl

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1944, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for rubble

• bubble
• double
• stubble
• trouble
• redouble

Kids Definition

rubble

noun

rub·​ble

ˈrəb-əl

1

: rough broken stones or bricks used in building

2

: a confused mass of rough or broken things