scar

¹ American  

[skahr] / skɑr /

noun

1. a mark left by a healed wound, sore, or burn.

2. a lasting aftereffect of trouble, especially a lasting psychological injury resulting from suffering or trauma.

3. any blemish remaining as a trace of or resulting from injury or use.

4. Botany.  a mark indicating a former point of attachment, as where a leaf has fallen from a stem.

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verb (used with object)

scarred, scarring

1. to mark with a scar.

verb (used without object)

scarred, scarring

1. to form a scar in healing.

scar ² American  

[skahr] / skɑr /

noun

British.

1. a precipitous, rocky place; cliff.

2. a low or submerged rock in the sea.

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scar ¹ British  

/ skɑː /

noun

1. any mark left on the skin or other tissue following the healing of a wound

2. a permanent change in a person's character resulting from emotional distress

   his wife's death left its scars on him

3. the mark on a plant indicating the former point of attachment of a part, esp the attachment of a leaf to a stem

4. a mark of damage; blemish

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verb

1. to mark or become marked with a scar

2. (intr) to heal leaving a scar

scar ² British  

/ skɑː /

noun

1. an irregular enlongated trench-like feature on a land surface that often exposes bedrock

2. a similar formation in a river or sea

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Other Word Forms

• scarless adjective

Etymology

Origin of scar¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; shortening of eschar

Origin of scar²

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English scarre, skerre, from Old Norse sker skerry

Example Sentences

The divide is partly generational: pitting some of those personally scarred by a troubled nuclear past against a younger population eager to embrace zero-carbon energy and technological advancement.

From The Wall Street Journal

"They were going to completely remove my right breast and leave me with nothing, just a big scar," she says.

From BBC

The agreement says firefighters should “cold-trail charred logs near the fire line with minimal tool scarring” and “consider allowing large logs to burn out.”

From Los Angeles Times

Abandoned for years, it is scarred by soot from a 2014 fire that gutted parts of the structure.

From BBC

She says offering Marven for adoption "scarred" her, but she "wanted a better life for him".

From BBC

Related Words

• blister
• crater
• defect
• discoloration
• disfigurement
• flaw
• scab
• wound