scratch

[[t]skræ̱tʃ[/t]]

scratches, scratching, scratched

1) VERB If you scratch yourself, you rub your fingernails against your skin because it is itching.

[V pron-refl] He scratched himself under his arm...

[V n] The old man lifted his cardigan to scratch his side...

I had to wear long sleeves to stop myself scratching.

2) VERB If a sharp object scratches someone or something, it makes small shallow cuts on their skin or surface.

[V n] The branches tore at my jacket and scratched my hands and face...

[V n] Knives will scratch the worktop.

3) N-COUNT Scratches on someone or something are small shallow cuts.

The seven-year-old was found crying with scratches on his face and neck...

I pointed to a number of scratches in the tile floor.

4) PHRASE: PHR after v If you do something from scratch, you do it without making use of anything that has been done before.

Building a home from scratch can be both exciting and challenging...

Hong Kong's manufacturing industry did not start from scratch in the post-war period.

5) PHRASE: V inflects If you say that someone is scratching their head, you mean that they are thinking hard and trying to solve a problem or puzzle.

The Institute spends a lot of time scratching its head about how to boost American productivity.

6) PHRASE: V inflects, oft PHR of n If you only scratch the surface of a subject or problem, you find out or do a small amount, but not enough to understand or solve it.

Officials say they've only scratched the surface of the drug problem...

We had only two weeks to tour Malaysia, which was hardly enough time to scratch the surface.

7) PHRASE: PHR after v, v-link PHR, usu with brd-neg If you say that someone or something is not up to scratch, you mean that they are not good enough.

My mother always made me feel I wasn't coming up to scratch.