Informal term or brand name for a mentholated ointment rubbed on the chest to help clear congestion and ease breathing; also a dialectal or slang term.
From Vicks VapoRub, a brand name created by the Vicks company. Named after either Vick or Richardson, the founders of the company in the early 1900s. Over time, the brand name became a generic term people use for any similar mentholated rub.
Brand names sometimes become so popular that people use them for all similar products—like saying 'Kleenex' for any tissue! 'Vick' did exactly that, and now millions of people use the brand name to mean any mentholated rub, even if it's a different company's product.
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