scrap

¹

[skrap]

noun

1. a small piece or portion; fragment: scraps of cloth.

   a scrap of paper;

   scraps of cloth.

2. scraps,

   1. bits or pieces of food, especially of leftover or discarded food.

   2. the remains of animal fat after the oil has been rendered; cracklings.

3. a detached piece of something written or printed.

   scraps of poetry.

4. 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.

5. 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

1. consisting of pieces or fragments.

2. existing in the form of fragments or remnants of use only for reworking, as metal.

3. discarded or left over.

   She was fashioning a toy out of some scrap wood.

verb (used with object)

scrapped, scrapping 

1. to break up into pieces for discarding or reworking.

   to scrap old cars.

2. to discard as useless, worthless, or ineffective.

   He urged that we scrap the old method of teaching mathematics.

scrap

²

[skrap]

noun

1. a fight or quarrel.

   She got into a scrap with her in-laws.

verb (used without object)

scrapped, scrapping 

1. to engage in a fight or quarrel.

scrap

¹

/ skræp /

noun

1. a small piece of something larger; fragment

2. an extract from something written

3. 1. waste material or used articles, esp metal, often collected and reprocessed

   2. ( as modifier )

      scrap iron

4. (plural) pieces of discarded food

verb

1. to make into scrap

2. to discard as useless

scrap

²

/ skræp /

noun

1. a fight or argument

verb

1. (intr) to quarrel or fight

Other Word Forms

• scrappingly adverb

Word History and Origins

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of scrap¹

C14: from Old Norse skrap; see _scrape

Origin of scrap²

C17: perhaps from _scrape

Example Sentences

Pro Cast was also cited for using more chromium-containing metals than regulators had approved for its processes, and for improperly storing scrap metal that contained chromium.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Anecdotal reports have circulated online about other oath ceremonies that have been scrapped.

Read more on BBC

SYDNEY—Australia’s ANZ ANZ -0.09%decrease; red down pointing triangle Group scrapped its share buyback and plans to invest in mortgage and commercial bankers as its new CEO tries to boost productivity and returns.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Abu Warda found an old metal kettle and lighted a small fire with scraps of wood, then brewed tea he poured into dented cups and passed around.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Food waste can be far more valuable than the pile of scraps left behind after a meal.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• chunk 
• fragment 
• grain 
• hunk 
• lump 
• morsel 
• shred 
• sliver 
• snippet 
• speck