rub up
verb
Forms rubs up rubbing up rubbed up rub ups
- verb (transitive) To polish or scrub; to cover (something with a substance) by rubbing. “I rubbed up the brass buttons on my jacket to make them shine.”
- verb (transitive) To rub (a body part): to massage, give a massage to.
- verb (intransitive, with on) To rub on someone or something. “The cat rubbed up on my legs.”
- verb (transitive) To create (something) by rubbing. “to rub up a lather”
- verb (ambitransitive, informal, dated) To revive one's knowledge of (something); to renew (a skill).
- verb (transitive, US, slang) To assault (someone).
- verb (transitive, obsolete) To reduce (something) to a powder or paste using friction (with a mortar and pestle, for example); to mix (with something) using friction. “to rub up pigments with water or oil”
- verb (transitive, obsolete) To excite or awaken (something); to revive or reawaken (something). “to rub up the memory; to rub up old sores”
Synonyms
Sources: Wiktionary — from the Wiktionary entry “rub up”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details