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:
An on-floor engineer remarked that they sell their scrap metal, and the price has skyrocketed—something they take as a sure indication that the economy is going down the tubes.
From Slate ● Oct. 29, 2026
The government also vowed to adjust student financial aid for inflation and by 2028 scrap Parcoursup, a centralized platform that manages college applications and that students say is too stressful and opaque.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026
When I handed him a dollar bill a few months ago, I gasped as he tore it up like a piece of scrap paper.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
The government said it was "consulting as soon as possible next year on private parking debt recovery fees, including on whether to cut an existing £70 cap or scrap the fees altogether".
From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2026
Cat, glancing around, saw Macon stacking scrap wood outside the workshop.
From "Caterpillar Summer" by Gillian McDunn
Gas standing charges in England, Scotland and Wales are also to be scrapped during 2027 "or as soon as possible after".
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
South Korean giant SK Hynix, which makes memory chips needed for AI, scrapped plans for its U.S. public listing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2026
The carrier is set to restart in force on Sunday, with only four flights listed on its website as canceled—compared with over 30 scrapped each day since the airport closure on Oct.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
The company, which has five locations in Greater Tokyo and claims over one million visitors a year, scrapped its video games and token machines last year to refocus on claw machines.
From Barron's ● Oct. 22, 2026
“He is clearly unfit to draw up our laws and his ridiculous Muggle Protection Act should be scrapped immediately.”
From "Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets" by J. K. Rowling
However, its US shares fell more than eight percent Thursday after it said it was scrapping plans for an initial public offering for its US subsidiary Solidigm, citing "market conditions and share price trends".
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
Others have debated whether the Treasury might consider scrapping 20-year auctions altogether, a move that seems unlikely.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 19, 2026
Some companies are scrapping data center plans amid pushback.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
Former Labour First Minister Mark Drakeford has said it is time to consider scrapping the UK government's Wales Office.
From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026
He was just scrapping, like any other kid would.
From "We Were Here" by Matt De La Peña
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