scab
Americannoun
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scabs
plural
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the incrustation that forms over a sore or wound during healing.
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Veterinary Pathology. a mangy disease in animals, especially sheep; scabies.
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Plant Pathology.
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a disease of plants characterized by crustlike lesions on the affected parts and caused by a fungus or bacterium.
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one of these crustlike lesions.
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a worker who refuses to join a labor union or to participate in a union strike, who takes a striking worker's place on the job, or the like.
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Slang. a rascal or scoundrel.
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Metallurgy.
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a projection or roughness on an ingot or casting from a defective mold.
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a surface defect on an iron or steel piece resulting from the rolling in of scale.
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Carpentry. a short, flat piece of wood used for various purposes, as binding two timbers butted together or strengthening a timber at a weak spot.
verb (used without object)
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scabs,
present (3rd person singular)
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scabbed,
past participle, past
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scabbing
present participle
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to become covered with a scab.
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to act or work as a scab.
noun
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the dried crusty surface of a healing skin wound or sore
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a contagious disease of sheep, a form of mange, caused by a mite ( Psoroptes communis )
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a fungal disease of plants characterized by crusty spots on the fruits, leaves, etc
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derogatory
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Also called: blackleg. a person who refuses to support a trade union's actions, esp one who replaces a worker who is on strike
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( as modifier )
scab labour
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a despicable person
verb
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to become covered with a scab
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(of a road surface) to become loose so that potholes develop
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to replace a striking worker
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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scabsimple
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scabssimple
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have scabbedperfect
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has scabbedperfect
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am scabbingprogressive
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are scabbingprogressive
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is scabbingprogressive
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have been scabbingperfect progressive
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has been scabbingperfect progressive
Past
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scabbedsimple
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had scabbedperfect
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was scabbingprogressive
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were scabbingprogressive
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had been scabbingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of scab
1200–50; 1800–10 scab for def. 4; Middle English < Old Norse skabb scab, itch; cf. shabby, shave
Explanation
Kids who fall and skin their knees know what a scab is: it's the crusty patch of skin that forms when a scrape or cut is healing. A wound will form a scab as it heals, whether it's a cut or a burn. Skin has an amazing ability to repair itself, and a scab is evidence of this. Scab is also a slang term for someone who crosses a picket line during a strike, choosing to work instead of joining coworkers in protesting low wages or harsh treatment by an employer. This kind of scab first meant "unpleasant person" in the late 1500s.
Vocabulary lists containing scab
"The Jacket"
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Kindred
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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.
See Examples For:
“I can tell you that it’s a wound that will scab over in time, but will tear open from time to time.”
From Slate ● Jul. 19, 2026
“These people believe that you take the scab off of a wound and take it off again and again until something miraculous happens,” Boritt grumbles to the camera.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2026
Apples are also among the most heavily treated fruits, with pesticides used in particular to fight apple scab, the main fungal threat to orchards.
From Barron's ● Jan. 29, 2026
That relationship picked an emotional scab for Davidtz.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 9, 2025
“Yes,” she says, scratching a scab on her knee.
From "The Unfinished Angel" by Sharon Creech
An AFP photograph showed a red area with several brownish scabs protruding above his shirt collar on the right side of the neck of the 79-year-old president, the oldest ever elected.
From Barron's ● Mar. 2, 2026
Some companies called on state militia and federal troops to put down uprisings and hired private security forces to protect so-called scabs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025
Verdugo Hills is ready with scabs to take on Birmingham in City flag football playoff game.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2024
It sticks with us because of how vividly it captured the hysterical unreality of living in a turbulent age, and how it picked at the scabs crusting over the face of the American dream.
From Slate ● Oct. 29, 2024
The scabs on my lips are especially gross in that little rectangle mirror.
From "Speak" by Laurie Halse Anderson
Whereas Li’s and Barker’s wounds are fresh, Longwell’s have largely scabbed over.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026
Another described her underarm skin as developing a pink rash which had "scabbed over".
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2025
The wounds that Vogel prods have largely scabbed over, and the concluding mood is one of compassion and release.
From New York Times ● Apr. 25, 2024
His hand is still bruised and scabbed, and it must heal fully before he can resume swinging a bat.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 22, 2023
Frankie flexed his fingers, regarding his scabbed knuckles, the slaughterhouse grime caught under his neatly trimmed nails.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
The rash goes through several stages which include flat spots, raised spots, blisters and then scabbing.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
While this may seem like a perfect opportunity, please note that the WGA does strongly enforces its right to prevent non-members who have engaged in scabbing from ever becoming members.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 2, 2023
In the photos taken by investigators soon after Suzanne’s disappearance on Mother’s Day that year, there are three abrasions or cuts scabbing over, Rohrich said, Fox 21 reported.
From Fox News ● Aug. 23, 2021
I said she was doing great, and when I tilted my webcam toward her during Zoom calls, I made sure my swollen, scabbing hand wasn’t visible on the screen.
From Slate ● Jun. 9, 2021
That sore, with its scabbing and yellow pus, looked to have gone from bad to worse and about another mile past that.
From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool
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.
