stub [OE] A stub was originally a tree stump. From this developed the general idea of a portion being left behind such as a broken branch [LME], then of a remaining portion of something [M16th]. The verb was initially used in the sense ‘to dig up a plant by the roots’. The meaning ‘to accidentally strike’, as in ‘I stubbed my toe’, was first used in the USA in the mid 19th century. Stubborn [ME] may be based on stub, though this is by no means certain. Stubborn originally meant ‘untameable or ruthless’ before the modern meaning, ‘obstinate’ [E16th], emerged.