scabby

American  

[skab-ee] / ˈskæb i /

adjective

scabbier, scabbiest

1. covered with scabs; having many scabs.

2. consisting of scabs.

3. (of an animal or plant) having scab.

4. Informal. mean or contemptible.

   a scabby trick.

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scabby British  

/ ˈskæbɪ /

adjective

1. pathol having an area of the skin covered with scabs

2. obsolete pathol having scabies

3. informal despicable

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Other Word Forms

• scabbily
  adverb
• scabbiness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of scabby

First recorded in 1520–30; scab + -y ¹

Example Sentences

But Scabby is a survivor, winning its most recent legal challenge in 2021, when the National Labor Relations Board ruled that it was a protected form of expression.

From Seattle Times • May 12, 2023

Yet — much like the currently surging rat population in New York — Scabby is unlikely to completely disappear anytime soon, as long as the rat keeps conveying his message of fair pay for workers.

From Seattle Times • May 12, 2023

But Flash said workers at the sites visited by Scabby shouldn’t take offense, since the rat is protesting against contractors and companies, not the workers themselves.

From Seattle Times • May 12, 2023

Finally, they commissioned Big Sky Balloons to create a massive inflatable Scabby.

From The Verge • May 13, 2021

And besides, Scabby here is almost as good as a master—and so is Lou Collingwood; I’m the only really irresponsible one in the bunch—” “Where do you go to swim?”

From The Jester of St. Timothy's by Pier, Arthur Stanwood