daub

/dɔb/

Other forms: daubed; daubs; daubing

Whenever you smear something on a surface, you are daubing. Abstract Expressionists may have been able to daub a canvas with paint and sell it for millions, but you probably wouldn’t be so lucky.

Daub can be used as a verb or as a noun, and is derived from the Old French debaur which comes from the Latin dealbare “to whiten.” It is also used to describe the process of covering a surface with an adhesive substance such as plaster, mud or grease. However, in its noun form, it means a smear of something. When you are ordering "a bagel with a smear," you could impress the guy at the deli by asking for "a daub" instead.

Definitions of daub

1. noun

   an unskillful painting
   type of:

   painting, picture

   graphic art consisting of an artistic composition made by applying paints to a surface
2. noun

   a blemish made by dirt
   synonyms: blot, slur, smear, smirch, smudge, spot

   types:

   blotch, splodge, splotch

   an irregularly shaped spot

   fingermark, fingerprint

   a smudge made by a (dirty) finger

   inkblot

   a blot made with ink

   type of:

   blemish, defect, mar

   a mark or flaw that spoils the appearance of something (especially on a person's body)
3. noun

   material used to daub walls
   type of:

   clay

   a very fine-grained soil that is plastic when moist but hard when fired
4. verb

   apply to a surface
   “daub paint onto the wall”

   synonyms:

   smear

   cover (a surface) by smearing (a substance) over it

   plaster

   coat with plaster

   type of:

   apply, put on

   apply to a surface
5. verb

   cover (a surface) by smearing (a substance) over it
   “daub the ceiling with plaster”

   synonyms: smear

   types:

   blood

   smear with blood, as in a hunting initiation rite, where the face of a person is smeared with the blood of the kill

   type of:

   cover

   provide with a covering or cause to be covered
6. verb

   coat with plaster
   “daub the wall”

   synonyms: plaster

   types:

   render-set

   cover with two coats of plaster

   parget

   apply ornamental plaster to

   roughcast

   apply roughcast to

   mud

   plaster with mud

   mortar

   plaster with mortar

   type of:

   coat, surface

   put a coat on; cover the surface of; furnish with a surface