/ ˈrʌbɪʃ; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun [ U ]
1.
( especially BrE ) things that you throw away because you no longer want or need them :
a rubbish bag / bin
a rubbish dump / heap / tip
The streets were littered with rubbish.
garden / household rubbish
—see also garbage , trash
2.
( BrE , informal ) (also used as an adjective) something that you think is of poor quality :
I thought the play was rubbish!
Do we have to listen to this rubbish music?
3.
( BrE , informal ) comments, ideas, etc. that you think are stupid or wrong
SYN nonsense :
Rubbish! You're not fat.
You're talking a load of rubbish.
It's not rubbish—it's true!
■ verb
[ vn ] ( BrE , informal ) ( NAmE trash ) to criticize sb/sth severely or treat them as though they are of no value
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BRITISH / AMERICAN
rubbish / garbage / trash / refuse
Rubbish is the usual word in BrE for the things that you throw away because you no longer want or need them. Garbage and trash are both used in NAmE . Inside the home, garbage tends to mean waste food and other wet material, while trash is paper, cardboard and dry material.
In BrE , you put your rubbish in a dustbin in the street to be collected by the dustmen . In NAmE , your garbage and trash goes in a garbage / trash can in the street and is collected by garbage men / collectors .
Refuse is a formal word and is used in both BrE and NAmE . Refuse collector is the formal word for a dustman or garbage collector.
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : from Anglo-Norman French rubbous ; perhaps related to Old French robe spoils; compare with rubble . The change in the ending was due to association with -ish . The verb (1950s) was originally Australian and New Zealand slang.