Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. to scold, to reprimand; thus rubbing down n.

1821–6		‘Bill Truck’ Man o’ War’s Man (1843) 252: [note] A most excellent invention for rubbing down the skittish or the refractory spirits of this enlightened age.
1896		J.F. Lillard Poker Stories 210: When he accidently dropped to the poker business he rose up and gave us an awful rubbing down.
1905		Sth London Press 15 Apr. 5/2: He had given [...] George and Massent such a rubbing down that [etc].

2. to search a person’s clothes and body, either for security reasons or as a preliminary to picking their pocket.

1823		‘Jon Bee’ Dict. of the Turf, the Ring, the Chase, etc. 84: Persons are usually rubbed down in the street preparatory to robbery.
1866		Sydney Morn. Herald 3 May 2/1: When the gaol birds are being mustered out of the yards into their cells the order ‘hands up!’ is given, and they are then ‘rubbed down,’ or searched, by the warders.
1877		Five Years’ Penal Servitude 193: Witherby then proceeded to ‘search’ or ‘rub down’ the men of the front rank.
1925		E. Jervis 25 Years in Six Prisons 21: As I had some ‘tools’ on me, I did not want to walk about the main roads, for fear some of the coppers should want to rub me down.
1933		J. Spenser Limey 259: Our chains and handcuffs were removed, and when we had been ‘rubbed down’ an old yellow-faced guard came up to us.
1935		Thieves Slang ms list from District Police Training Centre, Ryton-on-Dunsmore, Warwicks 9: Rub down: To search a person.
1956		‘Raymond Thorp’ Viper 68: First they rubbed me down - searched me from tip to toe.
1974		G.F. Newman You Flash Bastard 131: ‘Has he been searched ? Thoroughly ?’ ‘Well, he was rubbed down when they charged him, guv.’.

3. to hit, beat.

1824		Annals of Sporting 1 Mar. 199: Sending in a bellier, and rubbing down Goldie’s left lug with a chopper.
1834		‘Jack Downing’ Andrew Jackson 189: The gougers, and rip-roarious; the screamers who love tu rub one another down with their tooth-picks.
1845		Bell’s Life in Sydney 20 Dec. 2/4: Mary Hannan, with a countenance as hard as that of an Egyptian mummy, was charged by Matthew Deering, a private watchman, with rubbing down his children with brick-bats.
1871		Sportsman (London) ‘Notes on News’ 5 Aug. 4/1: The operation which Commodore Trunnion described as ‘rubbing a man down with an oak plant’ has been equalled by another [etc].

4. (UK black) to dance very close, rubbing one’s body against one’s partner.

1999		(con. 1979–80) A. Wheatle Brixton Rock (2004) 77: There’s still no excuse for you to rub her down like you’re trying to start a fire with her dress and your briefs.
2001		(con. 1981) A. Wheatle East of Acre Lane 80: When I see you rub down de girl in dat blues, me get red eye to rarted.