Chapter 19

3. A disagreeable and embarrassing predicament out of which one can not get without undergoing, as it were, a painful rubbing or scraping; a perplexity; a difficulty.

The too eager pursuit of this his old enemy through thick and thin has led him into many of these scrapes.

Bp. Warburton.

Scrape"pen`ny (?), n. One who gathers and hoards money in trifling sums; a miser.

Scrap"er (?), n. 1. An instrument with which anything is scraped. Specifically: (a) An instrument by which the soles of shoes are cleaned from mud and the like, by drawing them across it. (b) An instrument drawn by oxen or horses, used for scraping up earth in making or repairing roads, digging cellars, canals etc. (c) (Naut.) An instrument having two or three sharp sides or edges, for cleaning the planks, masts, or decks of a ship. (d) (Lithography) In the printing press, a board, or blade, the edge of which is made to rub over the tympan sheet and thus produce the impression.

2. One who scrapes. Specifically: (a) One who plays awkwardly on a violin. (b) One who acquires avariciously and saves penuriously.

Scrap"ing (?), n. 1. The act of scraping; the act or process of making even, or reducing to the proper form, by means of a scraper.

2. Something scraped off; that which is separated from a substance, or is collected by scraping; as, the scraping of the street.

Scrap"ing, a. Resembling the act of, or the effect produced by, one who, or that which, scrapes; as, a scraping noise; a scraping miser. -- Scrap"ing*ly, adv.

Scrap"pi*ly (?), adv. In a scrappy manner; in scraps. Mary Cowden Clarke.

Scrap"py (?), a. Consisting of scraps; fragmentary; lacking unity or consistency; as, a scrappy lecture.

A dreadfully scrappy dinner.

Thackeray.

Scrat (?), v. t. [OE. scratten. Cf. Scratch.] To scratch. [Obs.] Burton.

Scrat, v. i. To rake; to search. [Obs.] Mir. for Mag.

Scrat, n. [Cf. AS. scritta an hermaphrodite, Ir. scrut a scrub, a low, mean person, Gael. sgrut, sgruit, an old, shriveled person.] An hermaphrodite. [Obs.] Skinner.

Scratch (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Scratched (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Scratching.] [OE. cracchen (perhaps influenced by OE. scratten to scratch); cf. OHG. chrazzn, G. kratzen, OD. kratsen, kretsen, D. krassen, Sw. kratsa to scrape, kratta to rake, to scratch, Dan. kradse to scratch, to scrape, Icel. krota to engrave. Cf. Grate to rub.] 1. To rub and tear or mark the surface of with something sharp or ragged; to scrape, roughen, or wound slightly by drawing something pointed or rough across, as the claws, the nails, a pin, or the like.

Small sand-colored stones, so hard as to scratch glass.

Grew.

Be mindful, when invention fails, To scratch your head, and bite your nails.

Swift.

2. To write or draw hastily or awkwardly. "Scratch out a pamphlet." Swift.

3. To cancel by drawing one or more lines through, as the name of a candidate upon a ballot, or of a horse in a list; hence, to erase; to efface; -- often with out.

4. To dig or excavate with the claws; as, some animals scratch holes, in which they burrow.

To scratch a ticket, to cancel one or more names of candidates on a party ballot; to refuse to vote the party ticket in its entirety. [U. S.]

Scratch, v. i. 1. To use the claws or nails in tearing or in digging; to make scratches.

Dull, tame things, . . . that will neither bite nor scratch.

Dr. H. More.

2. (Billiards) To score, not by skillful play but by some fortunate chance of the game. [Cant, U. S.]

Scratch, n. 1. A break in the surface of a thing made by scratching, or by rubbing with anything pointed or rough; a slight wound, mark, furrow, or incision.

The coarse file . . . makes deep scratches in the work.

Moxon.

These nails with scratches deform my breast.

Prior.

God forbid a shallow scratch should drive The prince of Wales from such a field as this.

Shak.

2. (Pugilistic Matches) A line across the prize ring; up to which boxers are brought when they join fight; hence, test, trial, or proof of courage; as, to bring to the scratch; to come up to the scratch. [Cant] Grose.

3. pl. (Far.) Minute, but tender and troublesome, excoriations, covered with scabs, upon the heels of horses which have been used where it is very wet or muddy. Law (Farmer's Veter. Adviser).

4. A kind of wig covering only a portion of the head.

5. (Billiards) A shot which scores by chance and not as intended by the player; a fluke. [Cant, U. S.]

Scratch cradle. See Cratch cradle, under Cratch. -- Scratch grass (Bot.), a climbing knotweed (Polygonum sagittatum) with a square stem beset with fine recurved prickles along the angles. -- Scratch wig. Same as Scratch, 4, above. Thackeray.

Scratch, a. Made, done, or happening by chance; arranged with little or no preparation; determined by circumstances; haphazard; as, a scratch team; a scratch crew for a boat race; a scratch shot in billiards. [Slang]

Scratch race, one without restrictions regarding the entrance of competitors; also, one for which the competitors are chosen by lot.

Scratch"back` (?), n. A toy which imitates the sound of tearing cloth, -- used by drawing it across the back of unsuspecting persons. [Eng.]

Scratch"brush` (?), n. A stiff wire brush for cleaning iron castings and other metal.

Scratch" coat` (?). The first coat in plastering; -- called also scratchwork. See Pricking-up.

Scratch"er (?), n. One who, or that which, scratches; specifically (Zoöl.), any rasorial bird.

Scratch"ing, adv. With the action of scratching.

Scratch"weed` (?), n. (Bot.) Cleavers.

Scratch"work` (?), n. See Scratch coat.

Scratch"y (?), a. Characterized by scratches.

Scraw (skr), n. [Ir. scrath a turf, sgraith a turf, green sod; akin to Gael. sgrath, sgroth, the outer skin of anything, a turf, a green sod.] A turf. [Obs.] Swift.

Scrawl (?), v. i. See Crawl. [Obs.] Latimer.

Scrawl, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Scrawled (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Scrawling.] [Probably corrupted from scrabble.] To draw or mark awkwardly and irregularly; to write hastily and carelessly; to scratch; to scribble; as, to scrawl a letter.

His name, scrawled by himself.

Macaulay.

Scrawl, v. i. To write unskillfully and inelegantly.

Though with a golden pen you scrawl.

Swift.

Scrawl (skrl), n. Unskillful or inelegant writing; that which is unskillfully or inelegantly written.

The left hand will make such a scrawl, that it will not be legible.

Arbuthnot.

You bid me write no more than a scrawl to you.

Gray.

Scrawl"er (-r), n. One who scrawls; a hasty, awkward writer.

Scraw"ny (?), a. [Cf. Scrannel.] Meager; thin; rawboned; bony; scranny.

Scray (?), n. [Cf. W. ysgräen, ysgräell, a sea swallow, Armor. skrav.] (Zoöl.) A tern; the sea swallow. [Prov. Eng.] [Written also scraye.]

Scre"a*ble (?), a. [L. screare to hawk, spit out.] Capable of being spit out. [Obs.] Bailey.

Screak (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Screaked (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Screaking.] [Cf. Icel. skrækja to screech. Cf. Creak, v., Screech.] To utter suddenly a sharp, shrill sound; to screech; to creak, as a door or wheel.

Screak, n. A creaking; a screech; a shriek. Bp. Bull.

Scream (?), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Screamed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Screaming.] [Icel. skræma to scare, terrify; akin to Sw. skräma, Dan. skræmme. Cf. Screech.] To cry out with a shrill voice; to utter a sudden, sharp outcry, or shrill, loud cry, as in fright or extreme pain; to shriek; to screech.

I heard the owl scream and the crickets cry.

Shak.

And scream thyself as none e'er screamed before.

Pope.

Scream, n. A sharp, shrill cry, uttered suddenly, as in terror or in pain; a shriek; a screech. "Screams of horror." Pope.

Scream"er (?), n. (Zoöl.) Any one of three species of South American birds constituting the family Anhimidæ, and the suborder Palamedeæ. They have two spines on each wing, and the head is either crested or horned. They are easily tamed, and then serve as guardians for other poultry. The crested screamers, or chajas, belong to the genus Chauna. The horned screamer, or kamichi, is Palamedea cornuta.

Scream"ing, a. 1. Uttering screams; shrieking.

2. Having the nature of a scream; like a scream; shrill; sharp.

The fearful matrons raise a screaming cry.

Dryden.

Scree (skr), n. A pebble; a stone; also, a heap of stones or rocky débris. [Prov. Eng.] Southey.

Screech (skrch), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Screeched (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Screeching.] [Also formerly, scritch, OE. skriken, skrichen, schriken, of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. skrækja to shriek, to screech, skrkja to titter, Sw. skrika to shriek, Dan. skrige; also Gael. sgreach, sgreuch, W. ysgrechio, Skr. kharj to creak. Cf. Shriek, v., Scream, v.] To utter a harsh, shrill cry; to make a sharp outcry, as in terror or acute pain; to scream; to shriek. "The screech owl, screeching loud." Shak.

Screech, n. A harsh, shrill cry, as of one in acute pain or in fright; a shriek; a scream.

Screech bird, or Screech thrush (Zoöl.), the fieldfare; -- so called from its harsh cry before rain. -- Screech rain. -- Screech hawk (Zoöl.), the European goatsucker; -- so called from its note. [Prov. Eng.] -- Screech owl. (Zoöl.) (a) A small American owl (Scops asio), either gray or reddish in color. (b) The European barn owl. The name is applied also to other species.

Screech"ers (?), n. pl. (Zoöl.) The picarian birds, as distinguished from the singing birds.

Screech"y (?), a. Like a screech; shrill and harsh.

Screed (skrd), n. [Prov. E., a shred, the border of a cap. See Shred.] 1. (Arch.) (a) A strip of plaster of the thickness proposed for the coat, applied to the wall at intervals of four or five feet, as a guide. (b) A wooden straightedge used to lay across the plaster screed, as a limit for the thickness of the coat.

2. A fragment; a portion; a shred. [Scot.]

Screed, n. [See 1st Screed. For sense 2 cf. also Gael. sgread an outcry.] 1. A breach or rent; a breaking forth into a loud, shrill sound; as, martial screeds.

2. An harangue; a long tirade on any subject.

The old carl gae them a screed of doctrine; ye might have heard him a mile down the wind.

Sir W. Scott.

Screen (skrn), n. [OE. scren, OF. escrein, escran, F. écran, of uncertain origin; cf. G. schirm a screen, OHG. scirm, scerm a protection, shield, or G. schragen a trestle, a stack of wood, or G. schranne a railing.] 1. Anything that separates or cuts off inconvenience, injury, or danger; that which shelters or conceals from view; a shield or protection; as, a fire screen.

Your leavy screens throw down.

Shak.

Some ambitious men seem as screens to princes in matters of danger and envy.

Bacon.

2. (Arch.) A dwarf wall or partition carried up to a certain height for separation and protection, as in a church, to separate the aisle from the choir, or the like.

3. A surface, as that afforded by a curtain, sheet, wall, etc., upon which an image, as a picture, is thrown by a magic lantern, solar microscope, etc.

4. A long, coarse riddle or sieve, sometimes a revolving perforated cylinder, used to separate the coarser from the finer parts, as of coal, sand, gravel, and the like.

Screen (skrn), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Screened (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Screening.] 1. To provide with a shelter or means of concealment; to separate or cut off from inconvenience, injury, or danger; to shelter; to protect; to protect by hiding; to conceal; as, fruits screened from cold winds by a forest or hill.

They were encouraged and screened by some who were in high commands.

Macaulay.

2. To pass, as coal, gravel, ashes, etc., through a screen in order to separate the coarse from the fine, or the worthless from the valuable; to sift.

Screen"ings (?), n. pl. The refuse left after screening sand, coal, ashes, etc.

Screw (skr), n. [OE. scrue, OF. escroue, escroe, female screw, F. écrou, L. scrobis a ditch, trench, in LL., the hole made by swine in rooting; cf. D. schroef a screw, G. schraube, Icel. skrfa.] 1. A cylinder, or a cylindrical perforation, having a continuous rib, called the thread, winding round it spirally at a constant inclination, so as to leave a continuous spiral groove between one turn and the next, -- used chiefly for producing, when revolved, motion or pressure in the direction of its axis, by the sliding of the threads of the cylinder in the grooves between the threads of the perforation adapted to it, the former being distinguished as the external, or male screw, or, more usually the screw; the latter as the internal, or female screw, or, more usually, the nut.

The screw, as a mechanical power, is a modification of the inclined plane, and may be regarded as a right-angled triangle wrapped round a cylinder, the hypotenuse of the marking the spiral thread of the screw, its base equaling the circumference of the cylinder, and its height the pitch of the thread.

2. Specifically, a kind of nail with a spiral thread and a head with a nick to receive the end of the screw-driver. Screws are much used to hold together pieces of wood or to fasten something; -- called also wood screws, and screw nails. See also Screw bolt, below.

3. Anything shaped or acting like a screw; esp., a form of wheel for propelling steam vessels. It is placed at the stern, and furnished with blades having helicoidal surfaces to act against the water in the manner of a screw. See Screw propeller, below.

4. A steam vesel propelled by a screw instead of wheels; a screw steamer; a propeller.

5. An extortioner; a sharp bargainer; a skinflint; a niggard. Thackeray.

6. An instructor who examines with great or unnecessary severity; also, a searching or strict examination of a student by an instructor. [Cant, American Colleges]

7. A small packet of tobacco. [Slang] Mayhew.

8. An unsound or worn-out horse, useful as a hack, and commonly of good appearance. Ld. Lytton.

9. (Math.) A straight line in space with which a definite linear magnitude termed the pitch is associated (cf. 5th Pitch, 10 (b)). It is used to express the displacement of a rigid body, which may always be made to consist of a rotation about an axis combined with a translation parallel to that axis.

10. (Zoöl.) An amphipod crustacean; as, the skeleton screw (Caprella). See Sand screw, under Sand.

Archimedes screw, Compound screw, Foot screw, etc. See under Archimedes, Compound, Foot, etc. -- A screw loose, something out of order, so that work is not done smoothly; as, there is a screw loose somewhere. H. Martineau. -- Endless, or perpetual, screw, a screw used to give motion to a toothed wheel by the action of its threads between the teeth of the wheel; -- called also a worm. -- Lag screw. See under Lag. -- Micrometer screw, a screw with fine threads, used for the measurement of very small spaces. -- Right and left screw, a screw having threads upon the opposite ends which wind in opposite directions. -- Screw alley. See Shaft alley, under Shaft. -- Screw bean. (Bot.) (a) The curious spirally coiled pod of a leguminous tree (Prosopis pubescens) growing from Texas to California. It is used for fodder, and ground into meal by the Indians. (b) The tree itself. Its heavy hard wood is used for fuel, for fencing, and for railroad ties. -- Screw bolt, a bolt having a screw thread on its shank, in distinction from a key bolt. See 1st Bolt, 3. -- Screw box, a device, resembling a die, for cutting the thread on a wooden screw. -- Screw dock. See under Dock. -- Screw engine, a marine engine for driving a screw propeller. -- Screw gear. See Spiral gear, under Spiral. -- Screw jack. Same as Jackscrew. -- Screw key, a wrench for turning a screw or nut; a spanner wrench. -- Screw machine. (a) One of a series of machines employed in the manufacture of wood screws. (b) A machine tool resembling a lathe, having a number of cutting tools that can be caused to act on the work successively, for making screws and other turned pieces from metal rods. -- Screw pine (Bot.), any plant of the endogenous genus Pandanus, of which there are about fifty species, natives of tropical lands from Africa to Polynesia; -- named from the spiral arrangement of the pineapple-like leaves. -- Screw plate, a device for cutting threads on small screws, consisting of a thin steel plate having a series of perforations with internal screws forming dies. -- Screw press, a press in which pressure is exerted by means of a screw. -- Screw propeller, a screw or spiral bladed wheel, used in the propulsion of steam vessels; also, a steam vessel propelled by a screw. -- Screw shell (Zoöl.), a long, slender, spiral gastropod shell, especially of the genus Turritella and allied genera. See Turritella. -- Screw steamer, a steamship propelled by a screw. -- Screw thread, the spiral rib which forms a screw. -- Screw stone (Paleon.), the fossil stem of an encrinite. -- Screw tree (Bot.), any plant of the genus Helicteres, consisting of about thirty species of tropical shrubs, with simple leaves and spirally twisted, five-celled capsules; -- also called twisted-horn, and twisty. -- Screw valve, a stop valve which is opened or closed by a screw. -- Screw worm (Zoöl.), the larva of an American fly (Compsomyia macellaria), allied to the blowflies, which sometimes deposits its eggs in the nostrils, or about wounds, in man and other animals, with fatal results. -- Screw wrench. (a) A wrench for turning a screw. (b) A wrench with an adjustable jaw that is moved by a screw. -- To put the screw, or screws, on, to use pressure upon, as for the purpose of extortion; to coerce. -- To put under the screw or screws, to subject to pressure; to force. -- Wood screw, a metal screw with a sharp thread of coarse pitch, adapted to holding fast in wood. See Illust. of Wood screw, under Wood.

Screw (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Screwed (?); p. pr. & vb. n. Screwing.] 1. To turn, as a screw; to apply a screw to; to press, fasten, or make firm, by means of a screw or screws; as, to screw a lock on a door; to screw a press.

2. To force; to squeeze; to press, as by screws.

But screw your courage to the sticking place, And we'll not fail.

Shak.

3. Hence: To practice extortion upon; to oppress by unreasonable or extortionate exactions.

Our country landlords, by unmeasurable screwing and racking their tenants, have already reduced the miserable people to a worse condition than the peasants in France.

swift.

4. To twist; to distort; as, to screw his visage.

He screwed his face into a hardened smile.

Dryden.

5. To examine rigidly, as a student; to subject to a severe examination. [Cant, American Colleges]

To screw out, to press out; to extort. - - To screw up, to force; to bring by violent pressure. Howell. -- To screw in, to force in by turning or twisting.

Screw, v. i. 1. To use violent mans in making exactions; to be oppressive or exacting. Howitt.

2. To turn one's self uneasily with a twisting motion; as, he screws about in his chair.

Screw"-cut`ting (?), a. Adapted for forming a screw by cutting; as, a screw-cutting lathe.

Screw"-driv`er (?), n. A tool for turning screws so as to drive them into their place. It has a thin end which enters the nick in the head of the screw.

Screw"er (?), n. One who, or that which, screws.

Screw"ing, a. & n. from Screw, v. t.

Screwing machine. See Screw machine, under Screw.

Scrib"a*ble (?), a. [See Scribe.] Capable of being written, or of being written upon. [R.]

Scri*ba"tious (?), a. [See Scribe.] Skillful in, or fond of, writing. [Obs.] Barrow.

Scrib"bet (?), n. A painter's pencil.

Scrib"ble (?), v. t. [Cf. Scrabble.] (Woolen Manuf.) To card coarsely; to run through the scribbling machine.

Scrib"ble, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Scribbled (-b'ld); p. pr. & vb. n. Scribbling (-blng).] [From Scribe.] 1. To write hastily or carelessly, without regard to correctness or elegance; as, to scribble a letter.

2. To fill or cover with careless or worthless writing.

Scrib"ble, v. i. To write without care, elegance, or value; to scrawl.

If Mævius scribble in Apollo's spite.

Pope.

Scrib"ble, n. Hasty or careless writing; a writing of little value; a scrawl; as, a hasty scribble. Boyle.

Neither did I but vacant seasons spend In this my scribble.

Bunyan.

Scrib"ble*ment (?), n. A scribble. [R.] Foster.

Scrib"bler (?), n. One who scribbles; a petty author; a writer of no reputation; a literary hack.

The scribbler, pinched with hunger, writes to dine.

Granville.

Scrib"bler, n. A scribbling machine.

Scrib"bling (?), n. [See 1st Scribble.] The act or process of carding coarsely.

Scribbling machine, the machine used for the first carding of wool or other fiber; -- called also scribbler.

Scrib"bling, a. Writing hastily or poorly.

Ye newspaper witlings! ye pert scribbling folks!

Goldsmith.

Scrib"bling, n. The act of writing hastily or idly.

Scrib"bling*ly, adv. In a scribbling manner.

Scribe (skrb), n. [L. scriba, fr. scribere to write; cf. Gr. ska`rifos a splinter, pencil, style (for writing), E. scarify. Cf. Ascribe, Describe, Script, Scrivener, Scrutoire.] 1. One who writes; a draughtsman; a writer for another; especially, an offical or public writer; an amanuensis or secretary; a notary; a copyist.

2. (Jewish Hist.) A writer and doctor of the law; one skilled in the law and traditions; one who read and explained the law to the people.

Scribe (skrb), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Scribed (skrbd); p. pr. & vb. n. Scribing.] 1. To write, engrave, or mark upon; to inscribe. Spenser.

2. (Carp.) To cut (anything) in such a way as to fit closely to a somewhat irregular surface, as a baseboard to a floor which is out of level, a board to the curves of a molding, or the like; -- so called because the workman marks, or scribes, with the compasses the line that he afterwards cuts.

3. To score or mark with compasses or a scribing iron.

Scribing iron, an iron-pointed instrument for scribing, or marking, casks and logs.

Scribe, v. i. To make a mark.

With the separated points of a pair of spring dividers scribe around the edge of the templet.

A. M. Mayer.

Scrib"er (?), n. A sharp-pointed tool, used by joiners for drawing lines on stuff; a marking awl.

Scrib"ism (?), n. The character and opinions of a Jewish scribe in the time of Christ. F. W. Robertson.

Scrid (?), n. A screed; a shred; a fragment. [R.]

Scrig"gle (?), v. i. To wriggle. [Prov. Eng.]

Scrim (?), n. 1. A kind of light cotton or linen fabric, often woven in openwork patterns, -- used for curtains, etc,; -- called also India scrim.

2. pl. Thin canvas glued on the inside of panels to prevent shrinking, checking, etc.

Scri"mer (?), n. [F. escrimeur. See Skirmish.] A fencing master. [Obs.] Shak.

Scrim"mage (?; 48), n. [A corruption of skirmish. "Sore scrymmishe." Ld. Berners.] [Written also scrummage.] 1. Formerly, a skirmish; now, a general row or confused fight or struggle.

2. (Football) The struggle in the rush lines after the ball is put in play.

Scrimp (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Scrimped (?; 215); p. pr. & vb. n. Scrimping.] [Cf. Dan. skrumpe, G. schrumpfen, D. krimpen. Cf. Shrimp, Shrink.] To make too small or short; to limit or straiten; to put on short allowance; to scant; to contract; to shorten; as, to scrimp the pattern of a coat.

Scrimp, a. Short; scanty; curtailed.

Scrimp, n. A pinching miser; a niggard. [U.S.]

Scrimp"ing, a. & n. from Scrimp, v. t.

Scrimping bar, a device used in connection with a calico printing machine for stretching the fabric breadthwise so that it may be smooth for printing. Knight.

Scrimp"ing*ly, adv. In a scrimping manner.

Scrimp"ness, n. The state of being scrimp.

Scrimp"tion (?), n. A small portion; a pittance; a little bit. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Scrim"shaw` (?), v. t. To ornament, as shells, ivory, etc., by engraving, and (usually) rubbing pigments into the incised lines. [Sailor's cant. U.S.]

Scrim"shaw`, n. A shell, a whale's tooth, or the like, that is scrimshawed. [Sailor's cant, U.S.]