daub
Americanverb (used with object)
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to cover or coat with soft, adhesive matter, as plaster or mud.
to daub a canvas with paint; to daub stone walls with mud.
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to spread (plaster, mud, etc.) on or over something.
to daub plaster on a brick wall.
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to smear, soil, or defile.
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to apply, as paint or colors, unskillfully.
verb (used without object)
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to daub something.
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to paint unskillfully.
noun
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material, especially of an inferior kind, for daubing walls.
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something daubed on.
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an act of daubing.
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a crude, inartistic painting.
verb
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(tr) to smear or spread (paint, mud, etc), esp carelessly
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(tr) to cover or coat (with paint, plaster, etc) carelessly
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to paint (a picture) clumsily or badly
noun
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an unskilful or crude painting
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something daubed on, esp as a wall covering See also wattle and daub
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a smear (of paint, mud, etc)
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the act of daubing
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has daubedperfect 3rd person singular
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have daubedperfect
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am daubingprogressive 1st person singular
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has been daubingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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are daubingprogressive
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daubingparticiple
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is daubingprogressive 3rd person singular
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have been daubingperfect progressive
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daubssingular 3rd person
Past
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had daubedperfect
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were daubingprogressive plural
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was daubingprogressive singular
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had been daubingperfect progressive
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daubedsimple
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daubedparticiple
Future
Etymology
Origin of daub
1275–1325; (v.) Middle English dauben < Anglo-French, Old French dauber to whiten, paint < Latin dealbāre, equivalent to de-, prevocalic variant of dē- de- + albāre to whiten, derivative of albus white; (noun) late Middle English, derivative of the v.
Explanation
Whenever you smear something on a surface, you are daubing. Abstract Expressionists may have been able to daub a canvas with paint and sell it for millions, but you probably wouldn’t be so lucky. Daub can be used as a verb or as a noun, and is derived from the Old French debaur which comes from the Latin dealbare “to whiten.” It is also used to describe the process of covering a surface with an adhesive substance such as plaster, mud or grease. However, in its noun form, it means a smear of something. When you are ordering "a bagel with a smear," you could impress the guy at the deli by asking for "a daub" instead.
Vocabulary lists containing daub
Stroke of Genius: Words About Painting
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The Odyssey
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"Daedalus and Icarus"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Each death is a daub of paint on a vast canvas, but for the bereaved, each opens up a gaping chasm of grief.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 17, 2023
They're checking that their daub of Harry Kane, envisaged to occupy an entire wall, is complete.
From BBC • May 28, 2023
Celebrants daub each other with vividly colored powders.
From Seattle Times • Dec. 15, 2022
There’s a daub of blue paint in one corner, which he squished into the surface over a background of very, very light colors, and he’s painted the word “photo” above it.
From New York Times • Jan. 27, 2022
These early villages had wattle-and- daub houses, fine pottery, and some public architecture.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
