scavenger
To scavengeTo scavenge.
Recorded UK: Troll Control, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Meaning
2 senses(archaic)To scavenge.
(archaic)To clean the rubbish from a street, etc.
Examples
8 sentencesI'm on a scavenger hunt.
deIch bin auf einer Schnitzeljagd. — Yorwba
Lions are scavengers, among other things.
Tom and Mary organized a scavenger hunt.
deTom und Mary organisierten eine Schnitzeljagd. — belvedere
Carlos's friends had a scavenger hunt at the party.
I'm organizing a scavenger hunt for my son's thirteenth birthday party.
Origin
Originally from Middle English scavager, from Anglo-Norman scawageour (“one who had to doOriginally from Middle English scavager, from Anglo-Norman scawageour (“one who had to do with scavage, inspector, tax collector”), from Old Northern French *scawage, escauwage (“scavage”), Old French *scavage, escavage, alteration of escauvinghe (compare Medieval Latin scewinga, sceawinga), from Old Dutch scauwōn (“to inspect, to examinate, to look at”). Usually reinterpreted/re-analysed today as scavenge (which was originally a backformation from this word) + -er. Compare Old English sċēawung (“a showing, spectacle, examination, inspection, toll on exposure of goods”) and Dutch schouwing (“inspection”). More at show. See also messenger and passenger.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
scavengers, scavengering, scavengered, scavengered| Base form | scavenger · to scavenger |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | scavengers |
| Present participle | scavengering |
| Past simple | scavengered |
| Past participle | scavengered |
regular · Lesson
Word family
1 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.