Scavenger Definition

skăvən-jər
scavengers
noun
scavengers
A person who gathers things that have been discarded by others, as a junkman.
Webster's New World
Any animal that eats refuse and decaying organic matter.
Webster's New World
A person employed to clean the streets, collect refuse, etc.
Webster's New World
Anything that removes impurities, refuse, etc.
Webster's New World

Other Word Forms of Scavenger

Noun

Singular:
scavenger
Plural:
scavengers

Origin of Scavenger

  • From Middle English scavager, from Old French scawageour (“one who had to do with scavage, inspector, tax collector"), from Old French *scawage, *scavage, escavage, escauwage (“scavage"), alteration of escauvinghe (compare also Medieval Latin scewinga, sceawinga), from Middle English schewing (“inspection, examination"), from Old English scÄ“awung (“reconnoitering, surveying, inspection, examination, scrutiny"), equivalent to showing.

    From Wiktionary

  • Alteration of Middle English scauager, schavager official charged with street maintenance from Anglo-Norman scawager toll collector from scawage a tax on the goods of foreign merchants from Flemish scauwen to look at, show

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

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