See also: Dauber

English

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Etymology

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From Middle English daubere, equivalent to daub +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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dauber (plural daubers)

  1. (derogatory) One who, or that which, daubs; especially, a coarse, unskillful painter.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:unskilled person
    • 1853, Shearjashub Spooner, Anecdotes of Painters, Engravers, Sculptors and Architects and Curiosities of Art (Vol. 3 of 3)[1], page 140:
      After he had exerted all his powers to produce a masterpiece of art, the canons, upon viewing the picture, pronounced it a contemptible performance, and the artist a miserable dauber; and Vandyck could hardly obtain payment for his work.
    • 1869, Louisa May Alcott, Good Wives:
      I want to be great, or nothing. I won't be a common-place dauber, so I don't intend to try any more.
    • 2015, Erich Maria Remarque, The Promised Land[2], Random House, →ISBN, page 412:
      I'm not a good painter; I'm a dauber who can get a good likeness. Van Gogh or Cézanne would never have made it; I was given a bottle of Beaujolais and a set of directions.
  2. (copperplate printing) A pad or ball of rags, covered with canvas, for inking plates.
    Synonyms: dabber, inkball
  3. A type of thick marker pen used to mark a bingo card.
    Synonyms: dabber, dobber
    • 2007, “Fluorescent Adolescent”, in Favourite Worst Nightmare, performed by Arctic Monkeys:
      Said she wasn't going but she went still / Likes her gentlemen not to be gentle / Was it a Mecca dauber or a betting pencil?
  4. (archaic) A low and gross flatterer.
  5. The mud wasp; the mud dauber.

Derived terms

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Translations

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Anagrams

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French

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /do.be/
  • Audio:(file)

Verb

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dauber

  1. (dated) to hit; to strike
  2. (by extension) to insult; to denigrate; to defame
  3. to stink

Conjugation

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Further reading

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Old French

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Origin obscure. Probably from a merger of Latin dealbō (to whiten) and the Germanic root of adober (to knight, equip).

Verb

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dauber

  1. to whiten; whitewash
  2. to provide with; to furnish with
  3. to hit; to strike
  4. to insult; to denigrate; to defame

Conjugation

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This verb conjugates as a first-group verb ending in -er. The forms that would normally end in *-b, *-bs, *-bt are modified to p, s, t. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.

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Descendants

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  • English: daub
  • French: dauber