scrawl
verb (used with object)
to write or draw in a sprawling, awkward manner.
had been scrawling
-
past perfect progressiveof scrawl.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He had been scrawling pictures as a hobby from childhood.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Patriarch, in his armchair, had been scrawling words upon the slate all evening—and she had been wiping them off!
From The Miracle Man by Frank L. (Frank Lucius) Packard
T. A. Buck stared, open-mouthed, the paper on which he had been scrawling fluttering unnoticed to the floor.
From Roast Beef, Medium by Edna Ferber
He had been scrawling meaningless curlycues on a piece of paper as Ed Meyers talked.
From Roast Beef, Medium by Edna Ferber
"With the greatest pleasure!" said the duke, who had been scrawling on another ominous roll of vellum, and now passed it to the dwarf.
From The Midnight Queen by May Agnes Fleming
