common land vs scrub

common land

noun
  • an area of land in the United Kingdom or Ireland that is open to the public at all times and until the 18th century would have been land that was free for anybody to graze their animals on (often shortened to common). 

  • collectively, all the common land in one of those two countries. 

scrub

noun
  • One of the common livestock of a region of no particular breed or not of pure breed, especially when inferior in size, etc. Often used to refer to male animals unsuited for breeding. 

  • One not on the first team of players; a substitute. 

  • An instance of scrubbing. 

  • A thicket or jungle, often specified by the name of the prevailing plant 

  • Any medical uniform consisting of a short-sleeved shirt and pants (trousers). 

  • One who scrubs. 

  • One who labors hard and lives meanly; a mean fellow. 

  • A cancellation. 

  • A worn-out brush. 

  • One who is incompetent or unable to complete easy tasks. 

  • An exfoliant for the body. 

  • Clothing worn while performing surgery. 

  • Vegetation of inferior quality, though sometimes thick and impenetrable, growing in poor soil or in sand; also, brush. 

adj
  • Mean; dirty; contemptible; scrubby. 

verb
  • To rub anything hard, especially with a wet brush; to scour 

  • To eliminate or to correct data from a set of records to bring it inline with other similar datasets 

  • To maneuver the play position on a media editing system by using a scroll bar or touch-based interface. 

  • To move a recording tape back and forth with a scrubbing motion to produce a scratching sound, or to do so by a similar use of a control on an editing system. 

  • To rub hard; to wash with rubbing; usually, to rub with a wet brush, or with something coarse or rough, for the purpose of cleaning or brightening 

  • To be diligent and penurious 

  • To call off a scheduled event; to cancel. 

How often have the words common land and scrub occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )