scavenger

noun scav·en·ger \ ˈska-vən-jər \

|Updated on: 9 Jun 2018

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of scavenger

1 chiefly British : a person employed to remove dirt and refuse from streets

2 : one that scavenges: such as

a : a garbage collector

b : a junk collector

c : a chemically active substance acting to make innocuous or remove an undesirable substance

3 : an organism that typically feeds on refuse or carrion

See scavenger defined for kids

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Recent Examples of scavenger from the Web

Artists, bakers, chefs, scavengers, mobile boutiques, and more at indoor market.

— rasputin todd, Cincinnati.com, "Things to do this week in Cincinnati: June 4-10," 4 June 2018
There is not one particle in the heap the scavenger removes from our houses that is not again, and that speedily, put into circulation and profitably employed.

— daniel c. schlenoff, Scientific American, "50/100/150 Years Ago: The Politics of Urban Riots in 1968," 1 June 2018
That may not please beachgoing humans, but the scavengers will certainly appreciate it—seagull company excluded.

— matt simon, WIRED, "The Messy, Malodorous Mystery of the Dead 60-Foot Whale," 31 May 2018
Ants crawl on her impaled body, little scavengers looking for a nibble.

— katie walsh, latimes.com, "Bloody, beautiful 'Revenge' continues cherchez la femme genre wave," 10 May 2018
Bodies disappear in the vastness of the deserts and mountains, bones scattered by scavengers.

— bob ortega, CNN, "For families of vanished migrants, unidentified remains mean answers never come," 15 May 2018
Participants can select a scavenger list and try to locate the items while hiking on the nature trails.

— michelle mullins, Elgin Courier-News, "Elgin News Digest," 12 May 2018
Steve Apostolina’s darkly comic new caper descends into the shady world of book scouts — scavengers who comb the bargain bins for overlooked treasures and resell them to wealthy collectors.

— philip brandes, latimes.com, "The 99-Seat Beat: French Stewart, 'Pinocchio' reimagined and 'Dorothy Parker UnScripted'," 11 May 2018
Artists, bakers, chefs, scavengers, mobile boutiques, and more at indoor market.

— luann gibbs, Cincinnati.com, "Free stuff: Fun and free things to do this weekend in Cincinnati," 9 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'scavenger.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

You might guess that "scavenger" is a derivative of "scavenge," but the reverse is actually true; "scavenger" is the older word, first appearing in English in 1530, and the back-formation "scavenge" came into English in the mid-17th century. "Scavenger" is an alteration of the earlier "scavager," itself from Anglo-French scawageour, meaning "collector of scavage." In medieval times, "scavage" was a tax levied by towns and cities on goods put up for sale by nonresidents, in order to provide resident merchants with a competitive advantage. The officers in charge of collecting this tax were later made responsible for keeping streets clean, and that's how "scavenger" came to refer to a public sanitation employee in Great Britain before acquiring its current sense referring to a person who salvages discarded items.

Origin and Etymology of scavenger

alteration of earlier scavager, from Anglo-French scawageour collector of scavage (duty collected from non-resident street merchants), from skawage scavage, from Middle French dialect (Flanders) escauver to inspect, from Middle Dutch scouwen; akin to Old English scēawian to look at — more at show

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1530

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year