scrap
1 Americannoun
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a small piece or portion; fragment: scraps of cloth.
a scrap of paper;
scraps of cloth.
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scraps,
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bits or pieces of food, especially of leftover or discarded food.
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the remains of animal fat after the oil has been rendered; cracklings.
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a detached piece of something written or printed.
scraps of poetry.
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broken, discarded, or rejected items or parts for use as raw material or in reprocessing, as old metal that can be melted and reworked.
The two of them drive around collecting scrap to sell.
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chips, cuttings, fragments, or other small pieces of raw material removed, cut away, flaked off, etc., in the process of making or manufacturing an item.
Their cutting process is faster, but have you seen the amount of scrap it generates?
adjective
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consisting of pieces or fragments.
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existing in the form of fragments or remnants of use only for reworking, as metal.
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discarded or left over.
She was fashioning a toy out of some scrap wood.
verb (used with object)
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to break up into pieces for discarding or reworking.
to scrap old cars.
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to discard as useless, worthless, or ineffective.
He urged that we scrap the old method of teaching mathematics.
noun
verb (used without object)
noun
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a small piece of something larger; fragment
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an extract from something written
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waste material or used articles, esp metal, often collected and reprocessed
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( as modifier )
scrap iron
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(plural) pieces of discarded food
verb
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to make into scrap
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to discard as useless
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of scrap1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English noun scrappe “scrap of food,” from Old Norse skrap, derivative of skrapa “to scrape ”
Origin of scrap2
First recorded in 1670–80; variant of scrape
Explanation
A scrap is a little leftover bit of something. You might jot down notes on a scrap of paper, or you might toss a scrap of food to your happy dog. A scrap is typically a small item that originally was part of something larger, like a scrap of fabric that was once part of a larger piece. Scrap can also describe something that’s no longer useful. For example, you might take scrap metal to the recycling center. A final meaning of the noun scrap is "fight," as in "I got into a scrap with my brother." Scrap also has a verb form that means "discard." When you scrap your plan to move to the Bahamas, that means you’re abandoning the plan.
Vocabulary lists containing scrap
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:
“You can’t even scrap a car without a proper title.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
Despite the issues, Root decided earlier this month to scrap the midnight curfew that was imposed in January.
From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026
The internet as we knew it might have been torn down to the studs by Silicon Valley bigwigs looking to sell the wiring for scrap, but the bones are still good.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026
In 2025, the music and arts festival started on time, but heavy rains forced promoters to scrap it before the end of the weekend.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
They had left behind many of the things they had salvaged from Endurance, including the scrap lumber that had made dry floors for their flimsy, canvas tents.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
Instacart said the experiment helped retailers understand consumer preferences but scrapped the tests after customer pushback.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
The second phase is now understood to have been scrapped.
From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026
The chamber of commerce interim president Eliot Lincoln said he didn't want the minimum wage to be scrapped but believed it could not continue to rise in the way it had in previous years.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
On Monday night, Soren announced that this exam would also be scrapped.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
An angry public outcry followed, and the plan was quickly scrapped.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
But local politicians and parties to the settlement say scrapping the Biden-era pact would require years of federal review and public engagement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
General Motors is expanding its production of V-8 engines by scrapping an earlier plan to make EV motors at a plant in western New York.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
He also oversaw the privatisation of urban housing, scrapping welfare for millions of urban workers and promoting home ownership.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
The Swiss is in a lonely place after scrapping controversial plans to sell off stakes in Fifa competitions to private investment.
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
Dad didn’t have enough of a crew to build hay sheds, so he went back to scrapping.
From "Educated" by Tara Westover
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.
