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• scud
  scud

  verb (used without object)

  to run or move quickly or hurriedly.
• Scud
  Scud

  noun

  a surface-to-surface missile, especially one deployed on a mobile launcher.

scud

¹ American  

[skuhd] / skʌd /

verb (used without object)

scudded, scudding

1. to run or move quickly or hurriedly.

2. Nautical. to run before a gale with little or no sail set.

3. Archery. (of an arrow) to fly too high and wide of the mark.

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noun

1. the act of scudding.

2. clouds, spray, or mist driven by the wind; a driving shower or gust of wind.

3. low-drifting clouds appearing beneath a cloud from which precipitation is falling.

scud ² American  

[skuhd] / skʌd /

verb (used with object)

scudded, scudding

1. to cleanse (a trimmed and roughly depilated skin or hide) of remaining hairs or dirt.

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noun

1. the hairs or dirt removed by scudding.

Scud ³ American  

[skuhd] / skʌd /

Or Scud missile

noun

1. a surface-to-surface missile, especially one deployed on a mobile launcher.

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scud ¹ British  

/ skʌd /

verb

1. (intr) (esp of clouds) to move along swiftly and smoothly

2. (intr) nautical to run before a gale

3. (tr) to hit; slap

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noun

1. the act of scudding

2. meteorol

   1. a formation of low fractostratus clouds driven by a strong wind beneath rain-bearing clouds

   2. a sudden shower or gust of wind

3. a slap

Scud ² British  

/ skʌd /

noun

1. informal a Soviet-made surface-to-surface missile, originally designed to carry nuclear warheads and with a range of 300 km; later modified to achieve greater range: used by Iraq in the Iran-Iraq War and in the Gulf Wars

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Etymology

Origin of scud¹

First recorded in 1525–35; of obscure origin; possibly from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch schudden “to shake”

Origin of scud²

First recorded in 1780–90; of uncertain origin; perhaps from obsolete scud “dirt”

Origin of Scud³

The NATO name for a missile developed by the Soviets in the 1960s; probably from scud in the sense “to move quickly”

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Explanation

To scud is to quickly dart or dash, the way clouds scud across the sky on a windy day or a sailboat scuds along the surface of a lake when it finally catches a breeze. When something scuds, it's often because the wind seems to be blowing it along — so you might watch kites scud over the beach or birds scud from tree to tree. Experts aren't positive about the origins of this word, but one guess connects it to scut, "rabbit" or "rabbit's tail." The speed of something scudding influenced NATO's code name for the Soviet Union's Cold War-era missiles, Scuds.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scud Scud scudded scudding

The team looked at three types of freshwater animals -- two species of gammarid, or "scud," which is a small freshwater crustacean; one freshwater snail; and three aquatic insect species.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2023

Fleecy white clouds scud across a bright blue sky, providing enough intermittent shade to keep temperatures tolerable.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 6, 2020

The other problem maybe that the Iranian Houthi scud missiles may be of better quality...better material.

From New York Times ● Dec. 4, 2017

My thumbs scud across the 6 Plus screen with ease, and the occasional fat finger mistype is a nonissue given Apple’s rapidly improving autocorrect software.

From Slate ● Mar. 10, 2015

Below them a hook of land shrouded in the dark scud blowing down the shore and beyond that lying half over and awash the shape of a sailboat’s hull.

From "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy

Hunting enemy missiles was a major challenge for the U.S. in its 1991 war with Iraq as many of the Scud missiles the Iraqis used were mobile.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026

Work started on the system after the First Gulf War in 1991, when Iraq fired dozens of Soviet-made Scud missiles into Israel.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2024

During the gulf war, military officials said the system intercepted all but two Iraqi Scud missiles.

From New York Times ● Dec. 21, 2022

Sundry other military artifacts include a German Enigma machine, used to code military communications during World War II, and a Soviet Scud ballistic missile system.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 4, 2022

It is a mystery until this day how Scud reached the over-turned sail-boat as he did.

From A Republic Without a President and Other Stories by Herbert D. (Herbert Dickinson) Ward

Ryan Porteous' attempted clearance was scudded off the back of Ferguson straight into the path of Cosgrove.

From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2020

Gusts of dry leaves scudded across the parking lot.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 15, 2020

As I walked down to La Perle du Lac, Geneva’s exceptional lakefront park, rain clouds scudded grimly across the sky and the city felt like it was still asleep.

From New York Times ● May 28, 2018

His 10th appearance at the World Cup yielded his 40th shot, none of which have provided reward, when his second-half free-kick scudded against the defensive wall.

From The Guardian ● Jun. 24, 2014

By noon, though, the clouds had scudded off to the horizon and the day had grown hot and muggy but clear.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

It was quickly wiped out as Iran's push for a winner intensified, Mehdi Taremi scudding the bar, causing a visible gasp to emanate from the table below.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026

But in summer the view from the opposite side is equally spectacular: the approach of moisture-laden monsoon clouds, scudding across the sky.

From Seattle Times ● Oct. 9, 2022

In the quiet of evening, after competition has ended, the venue echoes with a scudding sound of practice throws and the heavy thunk of takeouts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2022

Are the scudding clouds moving at the right speed?

From The Guardian ● Sep. 7, 2019

As the scudding day passed overhead the dingy windows glowed and faded in ghostly retrograde.

From "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner

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