as in hicks
an awkward or simple person especially from a small town or the country
rural voters were tired of being treated as rubes by state officials, who showed interest in them only at election time
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Recent Examples of rubes
All those unsuspecting rubes with no idea what’s about to hit them.
—
Joe Hagan, Vanity Fair, 18 Mar. 2026
That set-up makes Cole relatively unique among prediction markets’ headliners, many of whom are suspected of exploiting insider info to dupe rubes for short-term gains.
—Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 26 Feb. 2026
Harry would be right to be bitter; Sally’s optimism was for rubes.
—Alexandra Schwartz, New Yorker, 17 Dec. 2025
Joe Hagan, Vanity Fair, 18 Mar. 2026
That set-up makes Cole relatively unique among prediction markets’ headliners, many of whom are suspected of exploiting insider info to dupe rubes for short-term gains.
—Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 26 Feb. 2026
Harry would be right to be bitter; Sally’s optimism was for rubes.
—Alexandra Schwartz, New Yorker, 17 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubes
Noun
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So a bunch of hicks from Topeka were left up to our own devices of going down to Robert Hall and finding something that might be kind of cool.—
Devon Ivie,
Vulture,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
His paternal grandparents were peasants in Transylvania; his maternal grandparents were also peasants, and his grandmother was illiterate.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
-
The peasants looked different, weathered.—
Michael Sheridan,
Vanity Fair,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Simply put, the small-town bumpkins from North Florida who support this idea should be made to pay for it.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
18 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Once completed, the $5 million acquisition will ensure the theater has a permanent home, a place where skateboarding clowns and leek-haired onions can continue to frolic and dance for decades to come.—
Todd Martens,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Apr. 2026
-
Plot details are being kept under wraps, though the film has been described as a four-quadrant coming-of-age comedy set in the world of funny and evil clowns.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Using his Hollywood makeup father’s prosthetics, Holliday transforms himself into hayseed-like Chad Powers.—
Baz Bamigboye,
Deadline,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Baby Billy’s first full-frontal scene is more a testament to Walton Goggins’s incredible hayseed bravado in the rule.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
31 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rubes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rubes. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
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