scar
1 Americannoun
-
a mark left by a healed wound, sore, or burn.
-
a lasting aftereffect of trouble, especially a lasting psychological injury resulting from suffering or trauma.
-
any blemish remaining as a trace of or resulting from injury or use.
-
Botany. a mark indicating a former point of attachment, as where a leaf has fallen from a stem.
verb (used with object)
-
scars,
present (3rd person singular)
-
scarred,
past participle, past
-
scarring
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
scars,
present (3rd person singular)
-
scarred,
past participle, past
-
scarring
present participle
noun
-
a precipitous, rocky place; cliff.
-
a low or submerged rock in the sea.
noun
-
any mark left on the skin or other tissue following the healing of a wound
-
a permanent change in a person's character resulting from emotional distress
his wife's death left its scars on him
-
the mark on a plant indicating the former point of attachment of a part, esp the attachment of a leaf to a stem
-
a mark of damage; blemish
verb
-
to mark or become marked with a scar
-
(intr) to heal leaving a scar
noun
-
an irregular enlongated trench-like feature on a land surface that often exposes bedrock
-
a similar formation in a river or sea
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
scarsimple
-
scarssimple
-
have scarredperfect
-
has scarredperfect
-
am scarringprogressive
-
are scarringprogressive
-
is scarringprogressive
-
have been scarringperfect progressive
-
has been scarringperfect progressive
Past
-
scarredsimple
-
had scarredperfect
-
was scarringprogressive
-
were scarringprogressive
-
had been scarringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of scar1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English; shortening of eschar
Origin of scar2
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English scarre, skerre, from Old Norse sker skerry
Explanation
A scar is a place where a wound healed but is still visible, or if you're little, it's a mark where a boo-boo was. Scar is from the Greek word eskhara, a "scab formed after a burn." It's all that and more. Scar can be a noun or a verb — you can have a scar on your knee after your skateboarding incident, and a bad round of chicken pox can scar you. Something scary can scar, you, too, like a horror movie or catching your parents in the act. Scars can be emotional. Take one letter off scare and you're left with a scar.
Vocabulary lists containing scar
Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
American Street
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
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:
Economists warn the issue risks leaving a generation of workers behind and a permanent scar on the economy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Rather than rebuilding healthy muscle, the damaged areas accumulated fat and scar tissue.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 2, 2026
But the German head coach insisted he had no regrets and said he and his team felt the pain most of all, describing it as the "scar we carry now".
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
Now Reid, dressed in black with his chest partially exposed beneath an open jacket revealing a scar, stepped on stage and into the role of Lestat in front of the audience.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 20, 2026
They had been a way for me to heal from my father’s untimely death, while this simply ripped apart the scar tissue.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
But the battles have left deep scars on Izyum and its residents -- both physical and psychological.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Yet, here, there are no visible stitches, no scars or seams.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
He’s got one foot on the so-called safe path — college, white-collar isolation — and the other on a career that’s already covering him in well-earned scars.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
As Anya talks to us, she lifts up her top to reveal several scars across her stomach.
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
She glanced at his bare chest, which was sweaty, bony, and streaked with old scars from weapon-making accidents.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
Nontheless, scarred by the devastation of the 2025 Palisades fire, 2024 Franklin fire and 2018 Woolsey fire, Malibuites take fire safety seriously.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
How unnerving that its creation scarred its creator.
From Salon ● Jul. 31, 2026
Their elders, who are more numerous and much richer, remain scarred by the bull market of the 1980s, which crashed in 1990 leaving lost decades in its wake.
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
But governments scarred by recent experience will want more than a return to normal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026
They’d look like…well, no one would have any idea what they’d look like: eye-patched pirates, limping pickpockets, scarred swordsmen.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
When coal dust is repeatedly inhaled over time, it causes scarring in the lungs that makes it difficult to breathe.
From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026
When cracks began scarring the structure and the front steps started to sink shortly after its 1922 opening, some people feared that nothing would stop the descent.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
According to the outlet, Collins has permanent scarring on his pancreas, and his kidneys “barely” function.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
Giant hogweed contains a sap which can leave painful blistering and scarring when it comes into contact with human skin.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
When the terrible itching that gave the disease its name started, Omakayas wrapped their hands with cloth, bit down their fingernails, anything to keep them from scarring themselves.
From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich
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.
