Synonyms of nub

nub

noun

ˈnəb 

1

as in chunk

a small uneven mass

throw a nub of butter into the frying pan

Synonyms & Similar Words

• chunk
• clump
• hunk
• wad
• lump
• glob
• knob
• piece
• gob
• nugget
• blob
• dollop
• nubble
• bead
• clod
• gobbet
• clot
• bit
• drop
• globule
• patch
• portion
• particle
• bulk
• chip
• nubbin
• body
• block
• granule
• crumb
• morsel
• scrap

2

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

• root
• core
• essence
• heart
• kernel
• point
• crux
• sum
• meat
• nubbin
• gist
• nucleus
• pith
• pivot
• bottom line
• net
• keynote
• centerpiece
• sum and substance
• subject
• bull's-eye
• tenor
• theme
• the long and short
• meat and potatoes
• direction
• substance
• course
• content
• body
• drift
• thesis
• hypothesis
• proposition
• purport

Example Sentences

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