from scratch

Idioms  

1. From the very beginning, from the outset; from nothing. For example, I knew we'd have a problem from scratch. Similarly, to start from scratch means “to start from the very beginning,” as in After the business failed, they decided to reorganize and start from scratch. This term comes from racing, where a competitor starts from the line scratched into the ground (whereas others may start ahead with a handicap). [Mid-1800s] Also see from the ground up; from the word go.

---

Example Sentences

Other firms have to build their policies from scratch.

From Barron's • Jun. 17, 2026

It also was a first for Green Dot, which typically had created new public charter schools from scratch, one grade at a time, to instill a strong culture of motivated families who assertively opt in.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 17, 2026

The U.S. military is using nonstandard contracts and tasking defense contractors to design new weapons from scratch to cut years of production time and hundreds of millions of dollars off their cost.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 15, 2026

Cooking a full-fledged meal from scratch seems too laborious.

From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026

My parents started their married life from scratch with nothing in the bank.

From "You Bring the Distant Near" by Mitali Perkins