shrub

1 of 2

noun (1)

ˈshrəb 

especially Southern ˈsrəb

: a low usually several-stemmed woody plant

shrub-like adjective

or shrublike

ˈshrəb-ˌlīk 

especially Southern ˈsrəb-

shrub-like plants

shrub

2 of 2

noun (2)

1

: an aged blend of fruit juice, sugar, and spirits served chilled and diluted with water

2

: a beverage made by adding acidulated fruit juice to iced water

Examples of shrub in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Just south of Champaign along I-57, IDOT removed invasive autumn olive shrubs and planted purple coneflower, bee balm and milkweed. — Susan Degrane, Chicago Tribune, 8 Oct. 2026

Across the country, trees and shrubs shut down the production of their energy-making chlorophyll, the pigment behind their lush greens, leaving behind vivid forests of yellows, oranges and reds. — Jeanne Bonner, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2026

Simply put, a rain garden is a depressed bed planted with native perennials and shrubs selected for their high-water tolerance. — ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026

Out in the garden, living butterflies flutter among orchids and flowering shrubs, some landing in butterfly traps hanging from the trees. — Sophie Neiman, Christian Science Monitor, 5 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English schrobbe, from Old English scrybb brushwood; akin to Norwegian skrubbebær, a cornel of a dwarf species

Noun (2)

Arabic sharāb beverage

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

circa 1706, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for shrub

• bub
• club
• cub
• dub
• grub
• hub
• nub
• pub
• rub
• scrub
• snub
• stub

Kids Definition

shrub

noun

ˈshrəb

: a woody plant that has several stems and is smaller than most trees