scavenge
verb (used with object)
to take or gather (something usable) from discarded material.
were scavenging
-
past progressiveof scavenge.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
The game caught on, and soon groups of merrymakers were scavenging all over the United States.
From New York Times ● Mar. 29, 2024
“Recent papers about allosaurus cannibalism are pretty interesting because it means, I think, they did not care if they were scavenging sauropods or anything, even other allosauruses, they were fine with it,” he said.
From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2023
They're not going to be relying on outside contractors the same way they were when they were scavenging time on computers around the country.
From Scientific American ● Apr. 21, 2022
In September last year, children from a slum in Tondo were scavenging for recyclable materials to sell when they dragged up a metal drum from under a bridge over the Pasig river.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2019
Garbage had not been collected all that week, and stray dogs were scavenging among mountains of waste.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
