scurry

[ skur-ee, skuhr-ee ]
See synonyms for: scurryscurriedscurriesscurrying on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),scur·ried, scur·ry·ing.
  1. to go or move quickly or in haste.

verb (used with object),scur·ried, scur·ry·ing.
  1. to send hurrying along.

noun,plural scur·ries.
  1. a scurrying rush: the scurry of little feet on the stairs.

  2. a short run or race.

Origin of scurry

1
First recorded in 1800–10; extracted from hurry-scurry

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use scurry in a sentence

  • They looked down at Grandfather Mole, who was still scurrying frantically about the garden.

    The Tale of Grandfather Mole | Arthur Scott Bailey
  • But agitation unlocks wayward fancies and sends them scurrying inopportunely across the very foreground of the mind.

    Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton
  • As Matt crawled over, he saw a roughly dressed man scurrying to get up the wall at the back of the shelf.

    Motor Matt's "Century" Run | Stanley R. Matthews
  • There followed a yelp, and the animal—coyote or wolf—could be heard scurrying away.

    Motor Matt's "Century" Run | Stanley R. Matthews
  • From a safe distance Beardsley adjusted his glasses and observed the frantic, scurrying techs, many of them nursing burned hands.

    We're Friends, Now | Henry Hasse

British Dictionary definitions for scurry

scurry

/ (ˈskʌrɪ) /


verb-ries, -rying or -ried
  1. to move about or proceed hurriedly

  2. (intr) to whirl about

nounplural -ries
  1. the act or sound of scurrying

  2. a brisk light whirling movement, as of snow

  1. horse racing a short race or sprint

Origin of scurry

1
C19: probably shortened from hurry-scurry

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012