Thesaurus results for NUB

nub

noun

ˈnəb

Definition of nub

as in chunk

a small uneven mass throw a nub of butter into the frying pan

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in root

the central part or aspect of something under consideration the nub of the argument is that the intelligence agencies failed the country

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of nub Slugs and snails are some of the peskiest garden visitors that can riddle plant leaves with ragged holes or chew tender crops like lettuce down to nubs overnight. — Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 18 June 2026 Lenovo's classic keyboard and TrackPoint (the trademark red nub that works as a joystick-like pointer controller) are as good as ever. — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 15 June 2026 The high-tops were essentially created as high-top basketball shoes with nubs tailored to astroturf, and a zippered tongue features an additional velcro layer at the top. — Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 9 June 2026 The neighborhood/area José Ignacio is a tiny nub of a peninsula jutting into the Atlantic about two and a half hours by car from downtown Montevideo. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for nub

Recent Examples of Synonyms for nub

Noun

Those gains, of course, allowed the club to partially circumnavigate La Liga’s spending controls so, even as the club lops off chunks of value from the asset each year, the Byzantine structure of it all has certainly served a purpose.

— Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
The skins cling like wet T-shirts to the filling beneath, with each plump bundle nearly bursting with big, discernible chunks of shrimp and ground pork.

— Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of chunk

Noun

Those children need to know their roots, need to know that there is always a place where they are loved and welcomed.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2026
Interventions can include removing trees and vegetation or constructing barriers to isolate their roots from the house’s foundations and, at the more extreme and expensive end, underpinning the house by pumping concrete beneath the foundations.

— Laura Paddison, CNN Money, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of root

Noun

Pulse once or twice to combine, then add the tahini and pulse another 5 or 6 times, until the mixture just comes together in a few large clumps but is still sandy.

— ABC News, ABC News, 8 Sep. 2026
The pasta—a hair clump of noodles in a soupy, sweetish tomato sauce—came in one of those parsimonious bowls with a small hollow in the middle and a rim as broad as Saturn’s rings.

— Ruby Tandoh, New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2026

Definition of clump

Noun

Yarbo later acknowledged the core technical findings and began rolling out fixes.

— Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 5 Sep. 2026
But the core four aren’t the only transplants from Woodsboro, as Ghostface soon rears its ugly head, directly targeting them and whomever else is caught up in their orbit.

— Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Sep. 2026

Definition of core

Noun

Stewart sealed her reinvention with a Best Actress nomination for Spencer back in 2022, but due to the Academy’s longstanding bias against hunks, Pattinson has been forced to wait longer for his own induction into the Oscar clubhouse.

— Nate Jones, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2026
There was absolutely no way to quietly set up that hunk of metal in the middle of the night without waking up the entire house.

— Brandi Fuller, Better Homes & Gardens, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of hunk

Noun

Don’t come expecting to blow a wad of cash on Peaks (there’s very little that costs much, anyway) and most of the stuff that the islanders are so proud of—the quiet beaches, the views, and the breezy walks—is free.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Sep. 2026
Walker wore his Cardinals hat backward, chewed a big wad of bubble gum and reveled afterward in flashing his imitation Liberty Bell bling, the champions chain presented by Ryan Howard.

— Dan Gelston, Chicago Tribune, 17 July 2026

Definition of wad

Noun

Following a short outpatient procedure, the device sits under his skin on his chest, similar to a heart pacemaker.

— Pamela McLoughlin, Hartford Courant, 11 Sep. 2026
Our hearts continue to be with the families and loved ones of those who were killed, and with the entire Miami-Dade community enduring an unimaginable time.

— David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of heart

Browse Nearby Words

nuanced

nub

nubbin

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Nub.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nub. Accessed 14 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of nub

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

empirical

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Popular

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Games & Quizzes