Definition of "shrub"

It is not only in face-to-face contexts that Kenyans police shrubbing; there are newspaper columns inviting readers to send in shrubs that they have witnessed, […]

2010, Norma Mendoza-Denton, Dana Osborne, “Two Languages, Two Identities?”, in Carmen Llamas, Dominic Watt, editors, Language and Identities, page 121

One of the first people to go on air on X Fm, Raabia (It’s not a kuyu [Kikuyu] shrub for labia) is about to exit the station, she’s being replaced by Mao (their lispy producer) […]

2011 September 23, Yeye, “Fuck it!”, in Media Madness‎, archived from the original on 2011-09-24

The Papistes […] though they be woll shrubbed, and shred, yet they begin euen nowe before the springe, to budde.

1573, Anthony Anderson, An Exposition of the Hymne commonly called Benedictus

The people who benefit from making fun of shrubbing, therefore, are Kenyans who do not speak indigenous languages, because they are less likely to shrub than Kenyans who learned English as a second language in school and may have a heavier accent.

2010, Norma Mendoza-Denton, Dana Osborne, quoting Heidi Orcutt-Gachiri, “Two Languages, Two Identities?”, in Carmen Llamas, Dominic Watt, editors, Shrubbing and the evaluation of expertise in Kenyan English and Kiswahili: placing Kenyan indigenous languages at risk, 2008, page 7, quoted in Language and Identities, page 121

However, Mwandani and her brother had noted that their mother had shrubbed and pointed it out right away.

2014, Michael Gathonjia Wairungu, “The notion of shrubbing vs. Mother tongue interference: a question of generation”, in "A Language of Many Hats": The Rise of Sheng and other Linguistic Styles among Urban Youth in Kenya, page 310

It is still considered embarrassing if people in authority like teachers or newscasters “shrub.”

2019 April 19, Alice Wairimu Nderitu, “Harro! I shrub because, really, I have no otherwise, do I?”, in The East African‎, retrieved 2021-11-05