dubstep

D2U1B3S1T1E1P3
/ˈdʌbstɛp/

noun

A subgenre of electronic dance music descended from 2-step garage that was popular in the early 2010s, characterized by its dark mood, sparse half-step and two-step rhythms, and emphasis on sub-bass.

UncommonScrabble 12

Meanings

noundubstep (uncountable)
  1. uncountableA subgenre of electronic dance music descended from 2-step garage that was popular in the early 2010s, characterized by its dark mood, sparse half-step and two-step rhythms, and emphasis on sub-bass.

    ...reflect broader class strategies within English society, and the same can be said for more recent genre mutations such as dubstep and grime.

    2007, Michael E Veal, Dub: Soundscapes and Shattered Songs in Jamaican Reggae
    4 more examples

    "Genres are so boring," said Scotsman Broon, one-half of the tech-house duo, as he scanned the cover of XLR8R magazine hyping "Dubstep" while shopping at Etherea record store.

    2002 July 16, Tricia Romano, “Electro Trash”, in Village Voice

    ...of course, a lot of grime producers and dubstep producers freely admit to FL being their primary tool, and the software is increasingly being used...

    2006, Mary Gaitskill, Daphne Carr, Da Capo Best Music Writing 2006

    Acid house, hard-core, drum 'n' bass, UK garage, grime, and dubstep are just a handful of now worldwide underground movements that developed in this way.

    2008, Matt Mason, The Pirate's Dilemma: How Youth Culture Is Reinventing Capitalism

    But musical ancestry aside, the influence to which Bieber is most beholden is the current trends in pop music, which means Believe is loaded up with EDM accouterments, seeking a comfortable middle ground where Bieber’s impressively refined pop-R&B croon can rub up on techno blasts and garish dubstep drops (and occasionally grind on some AutoTune, not necessarily because it needs it, but because a certain amount of robo-voice is expected these days).

    2012 June 26, Genevieve Koski, “Music: Reviews: Justin Bieber: Believe”, in The Onion AV Club, archived from the original on 05 Nov 2013

Origin

Translations

Arabic دبستيب, دابستيب
  • دبستيب (dabstīb)A genre of electronic music
  • دابستيب (dābstīb)A genre of electronic music
Dutch dubstep
  • dubstepA genre of electronic music
Esperanto dubstepo
  • dubstepoA genre of electronic music
French dubstep
  • dubstepA genre of electronic music
German Dubstep
  • DubstepA genre of electronic music
Greek ντάμπστεπ, dubstep
  • ντάμπστεπ (ntámpstep)A genre of electronic music
  • dubstepA genre of electronic music
Hungarian dubstep
  • dubstepA genre of electronic music
Italian dubstep
  • dubstepA genre of electronic music
Japanese ダブステップ
  • ダブステップ (dabusuteppu)A genre of electronic music
Korean 더브스텝
  • 더브스텝 (deobeuseutep)A genre of electronic music
Polish dubstep
  • dubstepA genre of electronic music
Russian да́бстеп
  • да́бстеп (dábstep)A genre of electronic music
Thai ดั๊บสเตป
  • ดั๊บสเตปA genre of electronic music
Turkish dubstep
  • dubstepA genre of electronic music
Cite this entry
APA

dubstep. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dubstep

MLA

“dubstep.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dubstep. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “dubstep,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dubstep.

Source: dubstep on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.