the rub
a problem or an obstacle
TRANSLATION
the rub = das Problem, die Schwierigkeit there's / here's the rub (idiomatic) = da liegt der Haken --- GOOGLE INDEX the rub: approximately 4,000,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
Here's THE RUB: A growing body of research suggests CEOs and social networking, at face value, remain an unlikely pair.
(Forbes magazine)
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THE RUB is that the process for putting undocumented immigrants — who will be granted probationary legal status — on a path to citizenship is contingent on a commission deciding that the border is secure.
(Washington Post)
(Forbes magazine)
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THE RUB is that the process for putting undocumented immigrants — who will be granted probationary legal status — on a path to citizenship is contingent on a commission deciding that the border is secure.
(Washington Post)
Did you
know?
the rub
idiom
- a difficulty or obstacle
(American Heritage Dictionary)
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The rub is a reference to the English game of bowls, where a rub is a flaw in the playing surface that interferes with the ball’s trajectory. The term is also used in modern golf, where the phrase "the rub of the green" either denotes a flaw in the playing surface or in general bad luck during the game.
In a figurative sense, a rub is a difficulty or impediment. It is often used in the expression "there’s the rub," which was apparently popularized by Shakespeare in the famous "to be or not to be" speech in Hamlet:
To sleep; perchance to dream; ay, there's the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil.
Rub can be found in several other expressions such as:
- rub someone the wrong way = to annoy or irritate (I kept my mouth shut even though the security guard at the airport rubbed me the wrong way)
- to rub someone's nose in something = to say or do things which make someone remember that they failed or got something wrong (Ever since the police stopped me for speeding, my family has been rubbing my nose in it)
- rub shoulders/elbows = to mix or socialize closely (There's a reception before the seminar starts. Let's go rub some shoulders.)
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problem, issue, situation, point, dilemma, trouble
Usage note: these synonyms can be utilized with the definite article (the problem is...the point is...) or with "here is," which is usually shorted to "here's" (here's the problem...here's the situation)
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SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"Here's the rub: they won't let you in the restaurant unless you are wearing a jacket."
idiom
- a difficulty or obstacle
(American Heritage Dictionary)
---
The rub is a reference to the English game of bowls, where a rub is a flaw in the playing surface that interferes with the ball’s trajectory. The term is also used in modern golf, where the phrase "the rub of the green" either denotes a flaw in the playing surface or in general bad luck during the game.
In a figurative sense, a rub is a difficulty or impediment. It is often used in the expression "there’s the rub," which was apparently popularized by Shakespeare in the famous "to be or not to be" speech in Hamlet:
To sleep; perchance to dream; ay, there's the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil.
Rub can be found in several other expressions such as:
- rub someone the wrong way = to annoy or irritate (I kept my mouth shut even though the security guard at the airport rubbed me the wrong way)
- to rub someone's nose in something = to say or do things which make someone remember that they failed or got something wrong (Ever since the police stopped me for speeding, my family has been rubbing my nose in it)
- rub shoulders/elbows = to mix or socialize closely (There's a reception before the seminar starts. Let's go rub some shoulders.)
---
problem, issue, situation, point, dilemma, trouble
Usage note: these synonyms can be utilized with the definite article (the problem is...the point is...) or with "here is," which is usually shorted to "here's" (here's the problem...here's the situation)
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"Here's the rub: they won't let you in the restaurant unless you are wearing a jacket."
