scoop

verb

scooped; scooping; scoops

transitive verb

1

a

: to take out or up with or as if with a scoop : dip

b

: to pick up quickly or surreptitiously with or as if with a sweep of the hand

—often used with up

scoop up the treat

2

: to empty by ladling out the contents

3

: to make hollow : dig out

4

: beat sense 5a(2)

scooped the rival newspaper

scoopable

ˈskü-pə-bəl 

adjective

scooper noun

Synonyms of scoop

• spoon
• bucket
• dip

Examples of scoop in a Sentence

She has a job scooping ice cream.

He scooped flour into the bowl.

A backhoe was scooping dirt from the hole.

The children scooped handfuls of marbles from the pile.

He scooped the dice off the table and rolled again.

Scoop a hole in the dough for the filling.

The city's biggest newspaper got scooped by a weekly paper that released the story a full day before.

Recent Examples on the Web

The Tribune on May 1, 1974, became the first news organization to publish the entire 246,000-word transcript of the Watergate tapes, scooping even the government printing office by several hours. —Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 6 June 2026

When the depot on the island next to PortMiami came up for sale in 2024, the county didn’t buy it — allowing a development partnership to scoop it up for $180 million and then announce plans to close the fuel operation and build condos instead. —Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 4 June 2026

Meryll Rogge, now the creative director of Marni, scooped the 2025 Grand Prize for her eponymous brand. —Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 3 June 2026

Summer jobs have been teenagers’ rite of passage for generations—from scooping ice cream and babysitting, to lifeguarding and bagging groceries. —Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 2 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing scoop

• scoop neck
• scoop up
• the inside scoop
• the scoop

Rhymes for scoop

• coop
• coupe
• croup
• droop
• drupe
• dupe
• group
• hoop
• loop
• lupe
• oop
• poop

Kids Definition

scoop

1 of 2 noun

ˈsküp 

1

a

: a large shovel (as for shoveling coal)

b

: a tool or utensil shaped like a shovel for digging into a soft substance and lifting out a portion

c

: a round utensil with a handle for dipping out soft food (as ice cream)

d

: a small tool for cutting or gouging

2

: an act or the action of scooping : a motion made with or as if with a scoop

3

a

: the amount held by a scoop

a scoop of ice cream

b

: a hole made by scooping

4

a

: information of immediate interest

what's the scoop

b

: the reporting of a news story ahead of competitors

scoopful

-ˌfu̇l 

noun

scoop

2 of 2 verb

1

: to take out or up with or as if with a scoop

2

: to make hollow

3

: to report a news story ahead of

scooper noun

Medical Definition

scoop

noun

ˈsküp 

: a spoon-shaped surgical instrument used in extracting various materials (as pus or foreign bodies)