scrape

verb

• 1 [with object] drag or pull a hard or sharp implement across (a surface or object) so as to remove dirt or other matter:remove the green tops from the carrots and scrape them [with object and complement]:we scraped the dishes clean
• [with object and adverbial] use a sharp or hard implement to remove (dirt or unwanted matter) from something:she scraped the mud off her shoes
• [with object and adverbial] apply (a hard or sharp implement) to a surface so as to remove dirt or other matter:he scraped the long-bladed razor across the stubble on his cheek
• make (a hollow) by scraping away soil or rock:he found a ditch, scraped a hole, and put the bag in it

• 2rub or cause to rub by accident against a rough or hard surface, causing damage or injury: [no object]:he smashed into the wall and felt his teeth scrape against the plaster [with object]:she reversed in a reckless sweep, scraping the Range Rover
• [with object] draw or move (something) along or over something else, making a harsh noise:she scraped back her chair and stood up
• [no object] move with or make a harsh scraping sound:she lifted the gate to prevent it scraping along the ground
• [no object, with adverbial] narrowly pass by or through something:there was only just room to scrape through between the tree and the edge of the stream
• [no object] humorous play a violin tunelessly:Olivia was scraping away at her violin
• [with object] (scrape something back) draw one’s hair tightly back off the forehead:her hair was scraped back into a bun
• [with object and adverbial] British spread (butter or margarine) thinly over bread: she became involved with scraping butter on to a piece of toast

• 3 [with object] just manage to achieve; accomplish with great effort or difficulty:Scotland scraped a lucky home draw with Portugal for some years he scraped a living as a tutor
• (scrape something together/up) collect or accumulate something with difficulty:they could hardly scrape up enough money for one ticket, let alone two
• [no object] try to save as much money as possible; economize:they had scrimped and scraped and saved for years
• [no object] (scrape by/along) manage to live with difficulty:she has to scrape by on Social Security
• [no object, with adverbial] barely manage to succeed in a particular undertaking:Bowden scraped in with 180 votes at the last election he scraped through the entrance exam

• 4 [with object] copy (data) from a website using a computer program: all search engines scrape content from sites without permission and display it on their own sites

noun

• 1an act or sound of scraping:he heard the scrape of his mother’s key in the lock
• an injury or mark caused by scraping:there was a long, shallow scrape on his shin
• a place where soil has been scraped away, especially a shallow hollow formed in the ground by a bird during a courtship display or for nesting: ringed plovers incubate eggs in shallow scrapes
• [in singular] British a thinly applied layer of butter or margarine on bread:when making sandwiches, use only the thinnest scrape of fat
• archaic an obsequious bow in which one foot is drawn backwards along the ground.

• 2 Medicine, informal a procedure of dilatation of the cervix and curettage of the uterus.

• 3 informal an embarrassing or difficult predicament caused by one’s own unwise behaviour:he’d been in worse scrapes than this before now