scrounge

American  

[skrounj] / skraʊndʒ /

Also scrounger

verb (used with object)

scrounged, scrounging

1. to borrow (a small amount or item) with no intention of repaying or returning it.

   to scrounge a cigarette.

2. to gather together by foraging; seek out.

   We'll try to scrounge enough food for supper from the neighbors.

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verb (used without object)

scrounged, scrounging

1. to borrow, especially a small item one is not expected to return or replace.

noun

1. a habitual borrower; sponger.

2. an act or instance of scrounging.

3. a person who exists by foraging.

verb phrase

1. scrounge around to search or forage for something, especially in a haphazard or disorganized fashion; hunt for.

   We scrounged around for something to eat.

scrounge British  

/ skraʊndʒ /

verb

1. to search in order to acquire (something) without cost

2. to obtain or seek to obtain (something) by cadging or begging

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Other Word Forms

• scrounger noun

Etymology

Origin of scrounge

First recorded in 1905–10; alteration of dial. scringe to glean

Explanation

When you scrounge, you borrow, scavenge, or forage for something. Somehow or other, you're going to have to scrounge up enough money to pay your sister back for that loan. Scrounge can essentially mean "root around looking for something," like when you scrounge for a snack in your grandparents' refrigerator. It also means to obtain something by wheedling or talking someone into giving it to you. If your best friend gets tired of you scrounging money for snacks and movie tickets, you may finally have to get a job.

Example Sentences

While some landlords offer a short grace period for renters to scrounge together enough cash, fintech companies are offering a different deal: split your rent into installments throughout the month.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 13, 2026

Presumably the gambit is to catch Mr. Powell for lying to Congress regarding the office renovations or scrounge for details in search of some other so far undetected offense.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 12, 2026

“It shouldn’t be. You shouldn’t scrounge to save money to go somewhere and be told you’ll be put on a waiting list. That should not happen, but it does.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2025

“It was absolutely horrendous. We were really struggling, having to scrounge around for masks and gloves,“ says Mandi Masters, a community midwife from Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire.

From BBC • Sep. 8, 2024

She goes forth nearly every day to scrounge up vegetables, and then bicycles back with her purchases in large shopping bags.

From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank