scuttled; scuttling
ˈskə-tᵊl-iŋ 
ˈskət-liŋ
1
: a quick shuffling pace
2
: a short swift run
scuttled; scuttling
1
: destroy, wreck
also
: scrap sense 2
2
: to cut a hole through the bottom, deck, or side of (a ship)
specifically
: to sink or attempt to sink by making holes through the bottom
1
: a small opening in a wall or roof furnished with a lid: such as
a
: a small opening or hatchway in the deck of a ship large enough to admit a person and with a lid for covering it
b
: a small hole in the side or bottom of a ship fitted with a covering or glazed
2
: a covering that closes a scuttle
1
: a shallow open basket for carrying something (such as grain or garden produce)
2
: a metal pail that usually has a bail and a sloped lip and is used especially for carrying coal
Synonyms
Verb (1)
- barrel
- belt
- blast
- blaze
- blow
- bolt
- bomb [slang]
- bowl
- breeze
- bundle
- bustle
- buzz
- cannonball
- careen
- career
- chase
- course
- crack (on)
- dash
- drive
- fly
- hare
- hasten
- hie
- highball
- hotfoot (it)
- hump
- hurl
- hurry
- hurtle
- hustle
- jet
- jump
- motor
- nip
- pelt
- race
- ram
- rip
- rocket
- run
- rush
- rustle
- scoot
- scurry
- shoot
- speed
- step
- tear
- travel
- trot
- whirl
- whisk
- zip
- zoom
Examples of scuttle in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Thomas Germain / Gizmodo, Quartz, 22 Mar. 2024
Platonov’s novel was set up in type, but, at the last minute, the publisher scuttled the project.
—Benjamin Kunkel, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2024
Her decision effectively scuttled Wernle's annual Catalyst4Change fundraising event last year, which Reid's company, Health Care Logistics, had planned to underwrite.
—The Indianapolis Star, 5 Mar. 2024
Critics accused Trump of scuttling the bill that might have helped settle chaos along the border in an attempt to win back the White House.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Mar. 2024
Jason Verrett was poised to debut at nickel back in his comeback attempt but a shoulder injury scuttled that plan in Week 18.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 23 Feb. 2024
The scheduling delays and uncertainty in staging an international production in the midst of a global pandemic scuttled the production.
—EW.com, 13 Feb. 2024
In 2017, Cruise announced plans to test its self-driving vehicles in lower Manhattan, but those plans were later scuttled with little explanation as to why.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024
The standoff ultimately led to Sony scuttling the deal in January.
—Anto Antony, Bloomberg.com, 20 Feb. 2024
Clark Collis, EW.com, 3 Nov. 2023
On today's The Excerpt podcast, the Israeli Supreme Court scuttles a key part of Netanyahu's judicial reform amid troop pullout.
—USA TODAY, 2 Jan. 2024
This Apple-Beeper scuttle has continued for a month, reports TechCrunch.
—Byalexandra Sternlicht, Fortune, 22 Dec. 2023
This little creature scuttles along the seafloor around Antarctica, and in new research, scientists use its genetics to argue that a major Antarctic ice sheet completely collapsed at a time in the past when temperatures were just one degree Celsius warmer than the preindustrial period.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 21 Dec. 2023
The ruling scuttles Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s marquee policy to curb migration and offers a warning shot to other European nations considering similar plans.
—Max Colchester, WSJ, 15 Nov. 2023
Classical simulations can also control the noise that plagues real quantum processors and often scuttles quantum runs.
—IEEE Spectrum, 3 Oct. 2023
This snapping shrimp scuttles through the reefs around Ambon Island in Indonesia, creating a cacophony with its closing claw.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 17 Oct. 2023
The deal scuttles city or county efforts to pursue higher wage boosts until the agreement expires in 2029.
—Suhauna Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 13 Sep. 2023
Verb
Because Congress scuttled an effort to make their financial disclosures easily searchable, the details on these investments are hard to come by.
—Thomas Germain / Gizmodo, Quartz, 22 Mar. 2024
Platonov’s novel was set up in type, but, at the last minute, the publisher scuttled the project.
—Benjamin Kunkel, The New Yorker, 11 Mar. 2024
Her decision effectively scuttled Wernle's annual Catalyst4Change fundraising event last year, which Reid's company, Health Care Logistics, had planned to underwrite.
—The Indianapolis Star, 5 Mar. 2024
Critics accused Trump of scuttling the bill that might have helped settle chaos along the border in an attempt to win back the White House.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Mar. 2024
Jason Verrett was poised to debut at nickel back in his comeback attempt but a shoulder injury scuttled that plan in Week 18.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 23 Feb. 2024
The scheduling delays and uncertainty in staging an international production in the midst of a global pandemic scuttled the production.
—EW.com, 13 Feb. 2024
In 2017, Cruise announced plans to test its self-driving vehicles in lower Manhattan, but those plans were later scuttled with little explanation as to why.
—Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024
The standoff ultimately led to Sony scuttling the deal in January.
—Anto Antony, Bloomberg.com, 20 Feb. 2024
Noun
What crawls and scuttles around those lava rocks are crabs.
—Clark Collis, EW.com, 3 Nov. 2023
On today's The Excerpt podcast, the Israeli Supreme Court scuttles a key part of Netanyahu's judicial reform amid troop pullout.
—USA TODAY, 2 Jan. 2024
This Apple-Beeper scuttle has continued for a month, reports TechCrunch.
—Byalexandra Sternlicht, Fortune, 22 Dec. 2023
This little creature scuttles along the seafloor around Antarctica, and in new research, scientists use its genetics to argue that a major Antarctic ice sheet completely collapsed at a time in the past when temperatures were just one degree Celsius warmer than the preindustrial period.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 21 Dec. 2023
The ruling scuttles Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s marquee policy to curb migration and offers a warning shot to other European nations considering similar plans.
—Max Colchester, WSJ, 15 Nov. 2023
Classical simulations can also control the noise that plagues real quantum processors and often scuttles quantum runs.
—IEEE Spectrum, 3 Oct. 2023
This snapping shrimp scuttles through the reefs around Ambon Island in Indonesia, creating a cacophony with its closing claw.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 17 Oct. 2023
The deal scuttles city or county efforts to pursue higher wage boosts until the agreement expires in 2029.
—Suhauna Hussain, Los Angeles Times, 13 Sep. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'scuttle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Scuttle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scuttle. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
scuttle
1 of 5 noun
scut·tle
ˈskət-ᵊl
: a metal pail for carrying coal
scuttle
2 of 5 noun
: a small opening (as in the deck of a ship or the roof of a house) with a lid or cover
also
: its lid
scuttle
5 of 5 noun1
: a quick scuffing pace
2
: a short swift run
Etymology
Noun
Middle English scutel "a shallow basket for carrying things," from Latin scutella "drinking bowl"
Noun
Middle English skottell "lid of a scuttle"
Verb
probably a combination of 1scud and 2shuttle
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