scum

[ skuhm ]

/ skʌm /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR scum ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a film or layer of foul or extraneous matter that forms on the surface of a liquid.

refuse or offscourings.

a low, worthless, or evil person.

such persons collectively; riffraff; dregs.

scoria(def 1).

verb (used with object), scummed, scum·ming.

to remove the scum from.

to remove as scum.

verb (used without object), scummed, scum·ming.

to form scum; become covered with scum.

Nearby words

sculpture, sculptured, sculpturesque, scultch, scultetus bandage, scum, scumbag, scumble, scumboard, scummy, scuncheon

Origin of scum

1200–50; Middle English scume < Middle Dutch schūme (Dutch schuim) foam; cognate with German Schaum foam

Related forms

scum·less, adjectivescum·like, adjectiveun·scummed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for scum

The inhabitants of Scum are divided into many warring tribes, and it is fearful to see the conflicts that take place.
Life in a Thousand Worlds|William Shuler Harris
Let all this boil together a full hour, and keep it constantly skimmed, as long as any Scum will rise upon it.
The Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby Knight Opened|Kenelm Digby
"Scum of the earth, most of them," he said, his plain face glowing.
The Street of Seven Stars|Mary Roberts Rinehart
The nobler people of Scum are banding together with the avowed purpose of bringing back the light of culture and refinement.
Life in a Thousand Worlds|William Shuler Harris

Scum like you has ter come ter the mark sooner or later, and come yer have.
Indian and Scout|F. S. Brereton

British Dictionary definitions for scum

scum

/ (skʌm) /

noun

a layer of impure matter that forms on the surface of a liquid, often as the result of boiling or fermentation

the greenish film of algae and similar vegetation surface of a stagnant pond

Also called: dross, scruff the skin of oxides or impurities on the surface of a molten metal

waste matter

a worthless person or group of people

verb scums, scumming or scummed

(tr) to remove scum from

(intr) rare to form a layer of or become covered with scum

Derived Forms

scumlike, adjectivescummer, noun

Word Origin for scum

C13: of Germanic origin; related to Old High German scūm, Middle Dutch schūm, Old French escume; see skim

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012