抹上去的那個動作
這一家就是核心畫面本身，其他幾家都是從這個動作的不同結果長出來的。
verb · C1
To put paint, mud, or another soft wet substance onto a surface in thick rough strokes, without being careful, so that it goes on unevenly.
胡亂塗抹
核心畫面
Picture a hand loaded with something wet and thick — mud, clay, paint — pushing it onto a surface and moving on. Nothing is measured, nothing is smoothed, and it goes on in patches. Every meaning here is one step of that single moment: the hand doing it, the patch it leaves, the wall it builds, and the picture it ruins.
可以想成一隻手抓著又濕又稠的東西——泥巴、黏土、油漆——往表面上一抹就過去。沒有量過，也沒有抹平，就是厚厚一塊一塊地…更多收起
可以想成一隻手抓著又濕又稠的東西——泥巴、黏土、油漆——往表面上一抹就過去。沒有量過，也沒有抹平，就是厚厚一塊一塊地留在那裡。這個字的每一個意思，都是這一瞬間的某一格：抹的那隻手、抹完留下的那一坨、抹滿整面牆變成的建材，還有抹出來、被人嫌的那幅畫。所以它跟 paint 最大的差別不在做什麼，而在怎麼做。From the word’s history
From Old Northern French dauber, 'to whitewash; plaster', probably from Latin dealbāre, 'to whiten thoroughly'. Wiktionary marks the Latin step as probable, not settled.
字典說它來自古北法語的 dauber（粉刷、抹灰泥），可能再往前接到拉丁文 dealbāre（刷白）——拉丁文那一步只標「可能」。這條線索跟核心畫面剛好對得上：它從一開始就是在牆上抹東西的字。後來抹的材料從灰泥擴大到油漆和泥巴，那個「隨手、不講究」的味道就一直留在字裡。
Wiktionary entry for daub: "From Middle English dauben ... from Old Northern French dauber ('to whitewash; plaster'), of uncertain origin. Probably from Latin dealbāre ('to whiten thoroughly')."
Three branches
抹上去的那個東西
把動作停住，看留在表面上的東西：少少一坨，就是名詞的 daub；抹滿整面牆，就是建材的 daub。
noun · C1
A small amount of something soft or sticky — paint, cream, sauce and so on — put onto a surface in one rough spot or stroke.
一小坨；一抹
抹出來的成品：被嫌的畫
核心畫面裡「不講究」那一半被單獨拿出來，變成對成品的評價。
noun · C2
A painting that is badly done — put on quickly and roughly, without skill. Calling a picture a daub is a way of saying it is not good art.
拙劣的畫