scoured

American  

[skou^uhrd, skou-erd] / skaʊərd, ˈskaʊ ərd /

adjective

1. cleansed or polished by hard rubbing, as with a rough or abrasive material.

   American society, through advertising, associates the scent of lemon with a freshly scoured kitchen.

2. cleared or dug out, as by the force of water, glaciers, etc..

   Muskeget Channel, located between Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, is a deeply scoured channel with strong tidal currents.

3. (of cotton, wool, etc.) cleaned or made free of impurities, debris, etc., by or as if by washing.

   When dried, the scoured wool is usually carded and combed before the process of spinning.

4. cleared or made free of anything undesirable; cleansed.

   It is from a scoured soul and a sober heart that prayer is engaged.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of scour.

Etymology

Origin of scoured

scour ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

So we scoured for stocks in the fund that have recently hit what look like the strongest outperformance versus the sector.

From Barron's • May 15, 2026

People rushed to grocery stores to stock up and scoured chat groups for scraps of information.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

"We scoured the scientific literature to find examples of pathogens infecting T cells. We found very few examples," said Harris, part of UVA's Department of Neuroscience.

From Science Daily • Feb. 16, 2026

The project has scoured social media, verified online footage and used eyewitness accounts to build up a chronicle of how and when the protesters were killed, as well as some details about their lives.

From BBC • Feb. 9, 2026

They threw open the bedding, overturned the mattress, scoured the tiny room.

From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers