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Glite Dictionary
to rub one's hands together

to rub one's hands together

3 3.3
Move hands quickly over each other to show excitement or pleasure
  • phrasal verb
translation icon : frotar las manos
  • "There you are," Field answered, "there you are!" He rubbed his hands together in anticipation.
  • rubbed his hands together in anticipation
  • rubbed his hands together and smiled
  • rubbed her hands together briskly

Examples

  • "Yes, you are," Thoris assured his friend, rubbing his hands together.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • "Dumont's expression had changed, and he rubbed his hands together happily."

    Fiction book (1992)

  • "We can stop at this point," he said, rubbing his hands together.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • Then he rubbed his hands together, and a fruit appeared in his hands.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • "Okay, okay, we know how good you are," Keisuke said, rubbing his hands together.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • Well put," said Nojima, rubbing his hands together happily.

    Fiction book (2002)

  • And there was no use telling Mr. Bem; he would only snigger, rub his hands together in delight.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • "And you're in love with someone else too, aren't you?" she said, rubbing her hands together.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • While she repeated their introduction, Nasir smiled and actually rubbed his hands together.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • "He rubbed his hands together in excitement as he waited for the surprise party to begin."

Synonyms

to rub
vsto rub one's hands together
600 1.0

To move your hand over something with pressure to clean, warm, or ease an itch

is a quick gesture showing excitement or expectation not general cleaning or warming
to rub hands together
vsto rub one's hands together
9 2.0

To move your hands quickly against each other to warm them

is used as a sign of excitement expectation or satisfaction rather than warming

Surface Forms

rub one's hands together infinitive
rubbed one's hands together past
rubbed one's hands together past participle
rubbing one's hands together present participle
rubs one's hands together third person singular

Morphology

rub + one + hand + together

The literal action — moving one's hands across each other — is directly and transparently derivable from 'rub' + 'hands' + 'together', so a learner who knows the words can infer the physical movement. However, the conventionalized pragmatic meaning (that this gesture signals expectation, excitement, or satisfaction) is a cultural/pragmatic extension that may not be predictable from the parts alone, making the expression only partially transparent.

Etymology

Rub one's hands together may come from market sellers who would rub their hands while thinking about a good sale, making their hands warm and showing they were eager and pleased. That's why it now means 'showing expectation, excitement, or satisfaction'.