Daub

Part of speech: verb, noun

Pronunciation: /dɔːb/

Definitions

1. To spread a thick or sticky substance unevenly over a surface ; a rough, careless coating or splash of material, especially paint ; a work done clumsily or without skill
2. To apply a messy or irregular layer of a substance onto something ; an untidy or patchy application of paint or plaster ; a piece of work executed with little care or finesse
3. To coat or smear something in a haphazard or careless way ; a blotchy or sloppy deposit of material, often visible and uneven ; a task or creation performed in a rough or inadequate manner

Etymology: The verb "daub" has a surprisingly clean-looking Latin ancestor that scholars still hedge on. Its likely source is Latin "dealbāre," meaning "to whiten thoroughly," built from "de-" (intensifying) and "albus" (white), the same root that gives English "albino" and "album." Through Old Northern French "dauber," which meant to whitewash or plaster, the word reached Middle English as "dauben," used for covering walls with clay or whitewash and, more messily, for spattering things with mud. The line of descent is not certain, since the French form's origin is itself uncertain, but the connection to "dealbate," a learned English word for whitewashing, suggests the two are doublets: separate descendants of the same Latin verb that entered English by different routes. The popular, everyday "daub" stayed close to its building-trade sense of plastering a surface, and its sense of smearing paint or paste on carelessly grew naturally out of that.

Synonyms: smear, splotch