scrawl
[ skrawl ]
/ skrɔl /
verb (used with object)
to write or draw in a sprawling, awkward manner: He scrawled his name hastily across the blackboard.
verb (used without object)
to write awkwardly, carelessly, or illegibly.
noun
awkward, careless, or illegible handwriting.
something scrawled, as a letter or a note.
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Nearby words
scratching post, scratchplate, scratchproof, scratchy, scraw, scrawl, scrawler, scrawly, scrawny, scrawp, screak
Origin of scrawl
Related formsun·scrawled, adjectiveun·scrawl·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for scrawl
British Dictionary definitions for scrawl
scrawl
/ (skrɔːl) /
verb
to write or draw (signs, words, etc) carelessly or hastily; scribble
noun
careless or scribbled writing, drawing, or marks
Derived Formsscrawler, nounscrawly, adjective
Word Origin for scrawl
C17: perhaps a blend of sprawl and crawl 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for scrawl
scrawl
1610s, "write or draw untidily," of uncertain origin, perhaps from Middle English scrawlen "spread out the limbs, sprawl" (early 15c.), which possibly is an alteration of sprawlen (see sprawl (v.)) or crawl (v.). Related: Scrawled; scrawling. The noun is recorded from 1690s, from the verb. Meaning "bad handwriting" is from 1710.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper