tubular

English

Etymology

From Latin tubulus +‎ -ar.^[1][2] By surface analysis, tubule +‎ -ar. The sense meaning "cool" or "awesome" is believed to be a figurative extension originating in surfing lingo, from the way that an excellent wave encloses a surfer within tubular walls of water.

Pronunciation

• enPR: tyo͞obyo͝olər, enPR: tyo͞obyələr
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈtjuːbjʊlə/, /ˈt͡ʃuː-/, /-bjə-/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈt(j)ubjələɹ/, /-bju-/
• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈtjʉːbjʊlə(ɹ)/, /ˈtjʉːbjələ(ɹ)/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: tu‧bul‧ar

Adjective

tubular (comparative more tubular, superlative most tubular)

1. Shaped like a tube.

   tubular bell

   • 1950 March, H. A. Vallance, “On Foot Across the Forth Bridge”, in Railway Magazine, page 150:

     As we descended the long wooden stairway that leads from the central tower to the Island of Inchgarvie, the straight and simple outlines of the internal viaduct stood out in sharp contrast to the long sweep of the massive tubular arms of the cantilevers, and the complicated network of the lattice cross girders.

2. Relating to, or composed of, tubes or tubules.
3. (US, slang, dated) Cool, awesome.
   • 2007, Brian Laesch, The Verge of Psychosis: An Aspiring Actor's Journal:

     It was such a tubular party, Journal! But a few minutes later, I walked up to the Hermosa Beach Pier and left the girls with my things, thinking the totally bitchin' party would continue. But when I got back, they were all gone.

Synonyms

• cannular
• tubiform
• tuboid
• tuboidal

Derived terms

• acinotubular
• aquatubular
• craniotubular
• extratubular
• glomerulotubular
• hemitubular
• intertubular
• intratubular
• microtubular
• multitubular
• myotubular
• nanotubular
• neurotubular
• nontubular
• papillotubular
• paratubular
• peritubular
• pretubular
• pseudotubular
• quasitubular
• renotubular
• reticulotubular
• sarcotubular
• semitubular
• sinotubular
• subtubular
• transtubular
• tubular bells
• tubularize
• tubular sponge hydroid
• unitubular
• vesiculotubular
• YouTubular

 

Related terms

• tubularity
• tubularly

Translations

shaped like a tube

Bulgarian: цилиндричен (cilindričen), тръбообразен (trǎboobrazen) Catalan: tubular (ca) Finnish: putkimainen (fi), putki- Galician: tubular German: schlauchförmig (de), rohrförmig Greek: αυλωτός (avlotós) Hungarian: csöves (hu) Irish: feadánach Russian: тру́бчатый (ru) (trúbčatyj), трубообра́зный (truboobráznyj) Spanish: tubular (es) Swedish: rörformig (sv) Welsh: tiwbaidd (cy), pibellaidd

of or pertaining to a tube

Bulgarian: тръбен (bg) (trǎben) Galician: tubular m or f Russian: тру́бный (ru) (trúbnyj) Spanish: tubular (es)

consisting of tubes

Galician: tubular m or f Russian: тру́бчатый (ru) (trúbčatyj) Spanish: tubular (es) Welsh: tiwbaidd (cy), pibellaidd

cool, awesome

See also

• cylindrical
• tubular assault
• tubular boiler
• tubular breathing
• tubular bridge
• tubular girder

References

1. “tubular, adj. and n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.
2. Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “tubular (adj.)”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central) [tu.βuˈlar]
• IPA^(key): (Balearic) [tu.buˈla]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [tu.buˈlaɾ]
• Rhymes: -a(ɾ)
• Hyphenation: tu‧bu‧lar

Adjective

tubular m or f (masculine and feminine plural tubulars)

1. tubular (shaped like a tube)

Related terms

• tub

Further reading

• “tubular” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “tubular”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “tubular” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “tubular” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Galician

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tubuˈlaɾ/ [t̪u.β̞uˈlaɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Hyphenation: tu‧bu‧lar

Adjective

tubular m or f (plural tubulares)

1. tubular (shaped like a tube)

Related terms

• tubo

Interlingua

Adjective

tubular (not comparable)

1. tubular, tube-shaped

Portuguese

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /tu.buˈlaʁ/ [tu.buˈlah]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /tu.buˈlaʁ/ [tu.buˈlah]
  • (São Paulo) IPA^(key): /tu.buˈlaɾ/
  • (Rio de Janeiro) IPA^(key): /tu.buˈlaʁ/ [tu.buˈlaχ]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /tu.buˈlaɻ/

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /tu.buˈlaɾ/ [tu.βuˈlaɾ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /tu.buˈlaɾ/ [tu.βuˈlaɾ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /tu.buˈla.ɾi/ [tu.βuˈla.ɾi]

• Rhymes: (Portugal, São Paulo) -aɾ, (most of Brazil) -aʁ, (Southern Brazil) -aɻ
• Hyphenation: tu‧bu‧lar

Adjective

tubular m or f (plural tubulares)

1. tubular (shaped like a tube)

Related terms

• tubo

Romanian

Alternative forms

• тубулар (tubular) — post-1930s Cyrillic spelling

Etymology

Borrowed from French tubulaire.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tu.buˈlar/
• Rhymes: -ar
• Hyphenation: tu‧bular

Adjective

tubular m or n (feminine singular tubulară, masculine plural tubulari, feminine and neuter plural tubulare)

1. tubular

Declension

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative/ accusative	indefinite	tubular		tubulară	tubulari	tubulare
	definite	tubularul		tubulara	tubularii	tubularele
genitive/ dative	indefinite	tubular		tubulare	tubulari	tubulare
	definite	tubularului		tubularei	tubularilor	tubularelor

Declension of tubular

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tubuˈlaɾ/ [t̪u.β̞uˈlaɾ]
• Rhymes: -aɾ
• Syllabification: tu‧bu‧lar

Adjective

tubular m or f (masculine and feminine plural tubulares)

1. tubular (shaped like a tube)

Related terms

• tubo

 

Further reading

• “tubular”, in Diccionario de la lengua española (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy, 2023 November 28