scuffle
English · Thesaurus
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scuffle¹
- /ˈskʌfəl/ UK
Rhymes with -ʌfəl
Where it comes from
Possibly of North Germanic/Scandinavian origin; compare Swedish skuff (“a push”) and skuffa (“to push”), from the Proto-Germanic base *skuf- (skuƀ), from Proto-Indo-European *skewbʰ-, see also Lithuanian skùbti (“to hurry”), Polish skubać (“to pluck”), Albanian humb (“to lose”).
noun scuffles
- A rough, disorderly fight or struggle at close quarters. The Dog leaps upon the Serpent, and Tears it to Pieces; but in the Scuffle the Cradle happen'd to be Overturn'd: […]
- Poverty; struggle. But even on the scuffle / The cleaner's press was in my jeans
- A child's pinafore or bib.
verb scuffles · scuffling · scuffled
- To fight or struggle confusedly at close quarters. Certainly a gallant man had rather fight to great diſadvantages for number and place in the field in an orderly way, then ſcuffle with an undiſciplined rabble.
- To walk with a shuffling gait. But shiftings and readjustments ensued, as they are sure to do with a walking-party. Cope presently found himself scuffling through the thin grass and the briery thickets alongside the young business-man.
- To make a living with difficulty, getting by on a low income, to struggle financially. Once a good friend of mine, a fine hoofer who was having trouble getting bookings, ran up to that tree, gave it a big smack, and yelled “Lawd please make me a pimp, any kind of a pimp, long as I’m pimpin’. I’m tired of scufflin’ and my feet are too long outa work.”
scuffle²
- /ˈskʌfəl/ UK
Rhymes with -ʌfəl
Where it comes from
The noun is a borrowing from Dutch schoffel; the English verb arose via subsequent verbification within English but is also parallel with Dutch schoffelen.
noun scuffles
-
A type of hoe, manipulated by both pushing and pulling, with a sharp blade parallel with the worked surface; an instance of this type.
Near-synonyms: collinear hoe, collineal hoe (loosely synonymous)
Similar: scuffle hoe, Dutch hoe, collinear hoe, collineal hoe[Appendix:Glossary
Translations
Every language
noun rough, disorderly fight or struggle at close quarters
| Español | riña, refriega |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 取っ組み合い tokkumiai |
| Português | rixa |
| Français | rixe, échauffourée, bagarre |
| Deutsch | Handgemenge, Rauferei |
| Italiano | zuffa, rissa, baruffa, ruffa |
| Română | încăierare |
| Русский | сты́чка stýčka, дра́ка dráka |
verb to fight or struggle confusedly at close quarters
| Español | reñir |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | raufen, balgen |
| Română | a se încăiera |
| Русский | дра́ться drátʹsja |
noun specialized hoe for weeding
| Español | azada holandesa |
|---|---|
| Français | binette |
| Русский | пропо́лочная моты́га propóločnaja motýga, голла́ндская моты́га gollándskaja motýga |
Talk about this word "scuffle." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/scuffle. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. scuffle. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/scuffle "scuffle." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/scuffle.Cite this
@misc{scuffle_2026,
title = {scuffle},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/scuffle},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
