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rubber band

rubber band

37 1.1
A thin loop of stretchy rubber that holds things together
  • noun
  • /ˈrʌbər bænd/
translation icon : goma elástica
  • She used a rubber band to hold the papers together neatly.
  • large rubber band
  • powered by rubber bands
  • one rubber band

So here I'm replacing the rubber band with this fishnet stocking.

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Examples

  • What about the rubber bands I told you about?

  • You will need an empty tissue box, six rubber bands, and six small corks to create this instrument.

    Academic text (2013)
  • And then it has a nice rubber band to keep everything nice and shut.

  • Even that one rubber band is already in the box.

  • I got the rubber band in my hand.

  • Find a rubber band or something.

  • OK, so first of all, we need rubber bands for security.

  • So, I stuck a rubber band on my finger -and that was it.

  • I leaned over and removed the rubber band that held the manuscript.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • Danny quickly pulls off his glove and takes off the big red rubber band around his wrist.

    Fiction book (1990)

Synonyms

elastic band
vsrubber band
  • UK
4 1.0

A thin loop of stretchy rubber that holds things together

is the same meaning but uses a different common adjective
elastic
vsrubber band
  • UK
2 2.0

A small round band of rubber used to hold things together

is the general term for any narrow loop used to hold things together

How Elastic

bungee cord
3 3.7
rubber band
37 1.1
scrunchie
7 2.8

Surface Forms

rubber band singular
rubber bands plural

Morphology

rubber + band

The noun 'rubber band' is a straightforward compound whose meaning — a band made from rubber — is directly and compositionally derivable from 'rubber' (the elastic material) + 'band' (a loop/strip). This object-type compound follows common word-formation patterns found across many languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

The compound noun rubber band comes from a simple object: a loop of elastic rubber that stretches and then snaps back to make a tight band around things. That's why the name describes its job of 'holding things together'.