'rubbish' originates from Middle English, influenced by the word 'rubble' (from Old French), where the root referred to 'broken fragments' or 'rubble'.

'rubbish' developed from Middle English terms meaning 'broken stones' or 'rubble' and by the early modern period extended to mean 'waste material'; later it acquired figurative senses such as 'nonsense'.

Initially, it meant 'broken stones, rubble', but over time it evolved into 'waste material' and later also gained the figurative meaning 'nonsense' or 'of poor quality'.