to scratch or scrape, as with the claws or hands.
to grapple or struggle with or as if with the claws or hands.
to scrawl; scribble.
to scratch or dig frantically with the hands; claw (often followed byat ).
scrabbling at a locked door to escape the flames.
to jostle or struggle for possession of something; grab or collect something in a disorderly way; scramble.
a scratching or scraping, as with the claws or hands.
a scrawled or scribbled writing.
a disorderly struggle for possession of something; scramble.
After the fumble, there was a scrabble for the football.
(intr; often foll by about or at) to scrape (at) or grope (for), as with hands or claws
to struggle (with)
to struggle to gain possession, esp in a disorderly manner
to scribble
the act or an instance of scrabbling
a scribble
a disorderly struggle
1530–40; < Dutch schrabbelen to scratch, frequentative of schrabben to scrape
To scrabble is to grasp or grope. If you lose your footing while rock climbing, you'll scrabble around with your fingers for a ledge to hang onto. The verb scrabble means to scratch or grab with your hands, the way you might search for something in a dark room or clutch at something frantically as you drop it. Scrabble also describes an animal's movements, like the sound of a squirrel that scrabbles, or scurries, out of your garbage can. Scrabble is also the name of a board game that involves making words out of letter tiles. Scrabble comes from the Dutch schrabben, "to scratch."
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I will not walk on a beach with you, but I will play Scrabble.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026
PAWTUCKET, R.I.—The maker of Candyland, Monopoly and Scrabble has a new board game on its hands.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 1, 2026
Did the kids want to read books or play Scrabble with their parents all afternoon?
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 19, 2025
A genial character wearing thick glasses and a backwards baseball cap, Tim explains he played Scrabble regularly throughout the pandemic.
From BBC • Apr. 13, 2024
“I’ve already stopped reading. Please keep your proper books and leave me with the books I like. And by the way, I still win when we play Scrabble, Mr. Read Proper Books.”
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
