scour
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scour 1
(skour)v. scoured, scour·ing, scours
v.tr.
1.
a. To clean, polish, or wash by scrubbing vigorously: scour a dirty oven.
b. To remove by scrubbing: scour grease from a pan.
2. To remove dirt or grease from (cloth or fibers) by means of a detergent.
3. To clean (wheat) before the milling process.
4. To clear (an area) by freeing of weeds or other vegetation.
5. To clear (a channel or pipe) by flushing.
v.intr.
1. To scrub something in order to clean or polish it.
2. To have diarrhea. Used of livestock.
n.
1. A scouring action or effect.
2. A place that has been scoured, as by flushing with water.
3. A cleansing agent for wool.
4. scours(used with a sing. or pl. verb) Diarrhea in livestock.
[Middle English scouren, from Middle Dutch scūren, from Old French escurer, from Late Latin excūrāre, to clean out : Latin ex-, ex-, Late Latin cūrāre, to clean (from Latin, to take care of, from cūra, care; see cure).]
scour′er n.
scour 2
(skour)v. scoured, scour·ing, scours
v.tr.
1. To search through or over thoroughly: The detective scoured the scene of the crime for clues.
2. To range over (an area) quickly and energetically.
v.intr.
1. To range over or about an area, especially in a search.
2. To move swiftly; scurry.
[Middle English scouren, to move swiftly, probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse skūr, shower.]
scour′er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
scour
(skaʊə)vb
1. to clean or polish (a surface) by washing and rubbing, as with an abrasive cloth
2. to remove dirt from or have the dirt removed from
3. (tr) to clear (a channel) by the force of water; flush
4. (tr) to remove by or as if by rubbing
5. (Veterinary Science) (intr) (of livestock, esp cattle) to have diarrhoea
6. (Veterinary Science) (tr) to cause (livestock) to purge their bowels
7. (Textiles) (tr) to wash (wool) to remove wax, suint, and other impurities
n
8. the act of scouring
9. the place scoured, esp by running water
10. something that scours, such as a cleansing agent
11. (Veterinary Science) (often plural) prolonged diarrhoea in livestock, esp cattle
[C13: via Middle Low German schūren, from Old French escurer, from Late Latin excūrāre to cleanse, from cūrāre; see cure]
ˈscourer n
scour
(skaʊə)vb
1. to range over (territory), as in making a search
2. to move swiftly or energetically over (territory)
[C14: from Old Norse skūr]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
scour1
(skaʊər, ˈskaʊ ər)v.
1. to cleanse or polish by hard rubbing, as with an abrasive material.
2. to remove (dirt, grease, etc.) from something by hard rubbing.
3. to clear or dig out (a channel, drain, etc.), as by the force of water.
4. to purge thoroughly, as an animal.
5. to clear or rid of what is undesirable.
6. to remove by or as if by cleansing; get rid of.
7. to clean or rid of debris, impurities, etc., by or as if by washing, as cotton or wool.
v.i. 8. to cleanse or polish a surface by hard rubbing.
9. to become clean and shiny when scoured.
n. 10. the act of scouring.
11. the place scoured.
12. an implement or preparation used in scouring.
13. the erosive force of moving water.
14. Usu., scours. (used with a sing. or pl. v.) diarrhea in horses and cattle caused by intestinal infection.
[1250–1300; Middle English (v.) < Middle Dutch scūren < Old French escurer < Latin excūrāre to take care of (Medieval Latin escūrāre to clean)]
scour′er, n.
scour2
(skaʊər, ˈskaʊ ər)v.
1. to range over, as in search: to scour the countryside for a lost child.
2. to run or pass quickly over or along.
v.i. 3. to range about, as in search of something.
4. to move rapidly or energetically.
[1250–1300; Middle English, appar. v. derivative of scour, in phrase god scour quickly]
scour′er, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
scour
Past participle: scoured
Gerund: scouring
| Imperative |
|---|
| scour |
| scour |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
Scour
When the soil being plowed does not stick to the plow shovel or moldboard, but rather slides off smoothly.
1001 Words and Phrases You Never Knew You Didn’t Know by W.R. Runyan Copyright © 2011 by W.R. Runyan
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. |  scour - a place that is scoured (especially by running water)place, spot, topographic point - a point located with respect to surface features of some region; "this is a nice place for a picnic"; "a bright spot on a planet" |
| Verb | 1. | scour - examine minutely; "The police scoured the country for the fugitive" |
| 2. | scour - clean with hard rubbing; "She scrubbed his back" rub - move over something with pressure; "rub my hands"; "rub oil into her skin" holystone - scrub with a holystone; "holystone the ship's deck" | |
| 3. |  scour - rub hard or scrub; "scour the counter tops"rub - move over something with pressure; "rub my hands"; "rub oil into her skin" | |
| 4. | scour - rinse, clean, or empty with a liquid; "flush the wound with antibiotics"; "purge the old gas tank" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
scour
1verb scrub, clean, polish, rub, cleanse, buff, burnish, whiten, furbish, abrade He decided to scour the sink.
scour
2verb search, hunt, comb, ransack, forage, look high and low, go over with a fine-tooth comb We scoured the telephone directory for clues.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
scour 1
verb1. To rub hard in order to clean:
scour 2
verb1. To make a thorough search of:
Slang: shake down.
2. To move swiftly:
bolt, bucket, bustle, dart, dash, festinate, flash, fleet, flit, fly, haste, hasten, hurry, hustle, pelt, race, rocket, run, rush, sail, scoot, shoot, speed, sprint, tear, trot, whirl, whisk, whiz, wing, zip, zoom.
Chiefly British: nip.
Idioms: get a move on, get cracking, go like lightning, go like the wind, hotfoot it, make haste, make time, make tracks, run like the wind, shake a leg, step on it.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يُنَقِّبُ عَن، يُفَتِّشُ عَن
cíditprohledat
gennemsøgeskure
grannskoîaskúra, skrúbba, òvo meî nuddi
berztizķemmētpārmeklēttīrīt
didik didik etmekiyice aramakovarak temizlemek
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
scour
[ˈskaʊər] vt (= search) [+ countryside, area, town] → passer au peigne fin; [+ shops] → écumer; [+ records, newspapers] → examiner
He scoured the advertisements for teaching posts → Il a écumé les annonces à la recherche de postes d'enseignant.
Officers have scoured the city for the missing man → Les agents ont passé la ville au peigne fin pour retrouver l'homme disparu.
Traders were scouring the villages for family treasures → Les négociants écumaient les villages à la recherche de trésors de famille.
He scoured the advertisements for teaching posts → Il a écumé les annonces à la recherche de postes d'enseignant.
Officers have scoured the city for the missing man → Les agents ont passé la ville au peigne fin pour retrouver l'homme disparu.
Traders were scouring the villages for family treasures → Les négociants écumaient les villages à la recherche de trésors de famille.
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
scour
1vt → scheuern
scour
2vt area, town, shops → absuchen, abkämmen (for nach); newspaper → durchkämmen (for nach)
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
scour
[ˈskaʊəʳ] vta. (clean, pan, floor) → sfregare
b. (search, area, countryside) → setacciare, perlustrare, battere palmo a palmo
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
scour1
(ˈskauə) verb to clean by hard rubbing.
scour2
(ˈskauə) verb to make a thorough search of. They scoured the woods for the child.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.