Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun An application of tallow and oil for dressing leather.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A mixture of tallow and oil used to soften leather, and make it waterproof.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun tallow mixed with oil; used to make leather soft and waterproof

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[From dub.]

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Examples

  • I only 'ad a little wound in me' and, an 'I used ter plug it wi' dubbin 'an' boot-polish ter keep it raw.

    Combed Out Frederick Augustus Voigt 1924

  • Your tent boy will grease these every day with "dubbin," of which you want a good supply.

    The Land of Footprints Stewart Edward White 1909

  • Oh, and dubbin, i hear from koreans that the best korean is out by me in the far reaches of eastern Queens. i am investigating further; more to come.

    Korean Fried Chicken Coming to Midtown For Lunch?!? | Midtown Lunch - Finding Lunch in the Food Wasteland of NYC's Midtown Manhattan 2008

  • The top brass had taken the view that the new buckled combat boots recently issued to soldiers would suffice for winter once treated with dubbin, but Hall now had conclusive evidence, if further evidence were needed, that even in the wet grass this was not the case.

    The Black Angel John Connolly 2005

  • One day, goin 'to his bunk, he found it all topsyversy, hair powder on his pillow, dubbin in his shavin' cup, salt pork wropt up in his dressin 'gown.

    In Clive's Command A Story of the Fight for India Herbert Strang

  • A constant dread to Tommy when he has forgotten to polish his buttons or dubbin his boots.

    Over the Top Arthur Guy Empey 1923

  • The biscuits and jam and chocolate lay spread on the edge of my "hole," and the canteen of tea-water over my boot-dubbin fire steadily refused to boil.

    The Memoirs of a Swine in the Land of Kultur 1919

  • Folk ask me, whiles, hoo it comes that I dwell still sae far frae the centre o 'the world -- as they've a way o' dubbin London!

    Between You and Me Harry Lauder 1910

  • You've been dubbin 'along, tryin' t 'play the way the law tells you to.

    The Trail of the White Mule B. M. Bower 1905

  • I've seen that dubbin boiling on the beach; there's tallow in it, and tar and resin as well.

    Wanderers Knut Hamsun 1905

Comments

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  • Mix tallow and oil and then rub in

    Till fingers are worn to a nubbin.

    To make your boot leather

    Impervious to weather

    You add lots of sweat to your dubbin.

    July 21, 2018

  • Dubbin is a greasy waterproofing material used to preserve and protect leather.

    just like :- John applied dubbin to his leather boots before going hiking to protect them from the rain and keep them in good condition.

    July 17, 2023