scavenger

American  

[skav-in-jer] / ˈskæv ɪn dʒər /

noun

• scavengers
  plural

1. an animal or other organism that feeds on dead organic matter.

2. a person who searches through and collects items from discarded material.

3. a street cleaner.

4. Chemistry. a chemical that consumes or renders inactive the impurities in a mixture.

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scavenger British  

/ ˈskævɪndʒə /

noun

1. a person who collects things discarded by others

2. any animal that feeds on decaying organic matter, esp on refuse

3. a substance added to a chemical reaction or mixture to counteract the effect of impurities

4. a person employed to clean the streets

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scavenger Scientific  

/ skăv′ən-jər /

1. An animal that feeds on dead organisms, especially a carnivorous animal that eats dead animals rather than or in addition to hunting live prey. Vultures, hyenas, and wolves are scavengers.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• scavengery
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• scavengers
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of scavenger

1520–30; earlier scavager < Anglo-French scawageour, equivalent to ( e ) scawage inspection ( escaw ( er ) to inspect < Middle Dutch schauwen to look at (cognate with show ) + -age -age ) + -eour -or ²

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Explanation

Ever catch a raccoon in your garbage can? The critter is a scavenger, digging around for whatever it can find to eat. In fact, anything or anybody searching for and collecting what others have tossed away is a scavenger. Originally the Middle English word skavager referred to a customs collector who collected scavage, or a toll on foreign goods brought in to sell. In the late 14th Century, scavengers were people hired to clean the streets. Later, the word was used for animals who ate decaying creatures. Later still, the "scavenger hunt" became popular as a game where people have to find items on a list. Anyone who hunts for and collects castoffs could be called a scavenger.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scavenger scavengers

The trust added that it had installed scavenger equipment at the maternity unit and that women could have confidence that it is safe to use Entonox.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

The finding supports the picture of T. rex as an active predator or scavenger with a relatively fast metabolism rather than a sluggish animal that depended heavily on basking in the sun.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 20, 2026

With dozens of actors who lead guests through scavenger hunts, puzzles and conversations, Knott’s Berry Farm’s ‘Ghost Town Alive!’ can’t be replicated.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026

But overall, it’s an inventive conceit for a scavenger hunt that prompts Felix and Marigold to re-examine their surroundings, recording the sounds of summer as they go.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026

James’s dad was in town that weekend, so Emily would be a solo scavenger.

From "Book Scavenger" by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

The couple kept feeding the scavengers, it said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026

The charity explained that the birds were "primarily scavengers who travel far and wide in search of food".

From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2026

The birds noisily fight over their stolen feast, a potential tip-off to other scavengers.

From Barron's ● Mar. 12, 2026

They are predators and scavengers, similar in some ways to birds of prey, and play an important role in cleaning up carcasses.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 12, 2026

For the rest of the day she remained in the kitchen, unable to watch the miscellaneous horde of yard sale scavengers pick over her personal possessions.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

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