scoured

American  

[skou^uhrd, skou-erd] / skaʊərd, ˈskaʊ ərd /

adjective

1. cleansed or polished by hard rubbing, as with a rough or abrasive material.

   American society, through advertising, associates the scent of lemon with a freshly scoured kitchen.

2. cleared or dug out, as by the force of water, glaciers, etc..

   Muskeget Channel, located between Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, is a deeply scoured channel with strong tidal currents.

3. (of cotton, wool, etc.) cleaned or made free of impurities, debris, etc., by or as if by washing.

   When dried, the scoured wool is usually carded and combed before the process of spinning.

4. cleared or made free of anything undesirable; cleansed.

   It is from a scoured soul and a sober heart that prayer is engaged.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of scour.

Etymology

Origin of scoured

scour ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Authorities also removed another 2-year-old child from the couple’s custody and scoured a field in Moreno Valley, accompanied by Jake Haro in a jail jumpsuit.

From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026

He scoured the S&P 1500 Index for stocks at the higher end of sensitivity to economic data and that are at the lower end of debt cost sensitivity.

From Barron's • Mar. 24, 2026

However, psephologists scoured the Gorton and Denton result for clues on how a nationwide vote might play out.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 27, 2026

"We scoured the scientific literature to find examples of pathogens infecting T cells. We found very few examples," said Harris, part of UVA's Department of Neuroscience.

From Science Daily • Feb. 16, 2026

It was an open space with few hiding places, and I scoured the area for signs of a trap, but as far as I could tell, Marcus was alone.

From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson