1
: scabies of domestic animals
2
: a crust of hardened blood and serum over a wound
3
a
: a contemptible person
b(1)
: a worker who refuses to join a labor union
(2)
: a union member who refuses to strike or returns to work before a strike has ended
(3)
: a worker who accepts employment or replaces a union worker during a strike
(4)
: one who works for less than union wages or on nonunion terms
4
: any of various bacterial or fungus diseases of plants characterized by crustaceous spots
also
: one of the spots
scabbed; scabbing
Examples of scab in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Andrew Chapman, Longreads, 18 Apr. 2024
No need to rip off a scab while the wound is still healing.
—Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 3 Apr. 2024
The seven-year labor agreement marked the end of a denial of employment by PRO and MLS which meant scab workers took to the field to referee games in place of PSRA members for the opening weeks of the season.
—James Nalton, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
As Manus sees it, Trump ripped the scab off the wound of festering populist disenchantment.
—Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2024
From the time someone first notices symptoms until the last pustules scab over and fall off, an mpox infection can take anywhere from two weeks to a month to run its course.
—Stephen C. George, Discover Magazine, 5 Mar. 2024
Eventually the sores will crust over and form scabs, which finally fall off.
—Stephen C. George, Discover Magazine, 5 Mar. 2024
The Instagram Story pic sees Barker's hand covered in blood and scabs, surrounding a particularly wide gash across one of his knuckles.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 16 Oct. 2023
The coming election season, with Trump likely on the ballot, could be enough to pick the scab.
—Jonathan Weisman Benjamin Rasmussen, New York Times, 30 Nov. 2023
Mark Hay, SELF, 26 Jan. 2024
Eventually the spots, which initially look like a pimple or pustule, can scab or crust over.
—Dr. Mark Abdelmalek, ABC News, 25 July 2022
Finally, the lesions will scab over and eventually fall off.
—Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2022
The color will darken because your lips will scab as the swelling subsides.
—Jacqueline Saguin, Good Housekeeping, 11 Apr. 2023
Wounds on his knees would scab over and reopen after he was forced to kneel on uncooked rice and concrete.
—James Queallystaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan. 2023
Its wounds stop bleeding, scab over quickly, and shrink by 64 percent within a day.
—Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 26 Sep. 2012
Thwarting the rash could also help people make a swifter exit from isolation, which can stretch for weeks as patients wait for their lesions to scab and heal over.
—Emily Alpert Reyes, Anchorage Daily News, 11 Aug. 2022
After that, the rash goes through phases, including pustules progressing to blisters that eventually scab over.
—Dr. Mark Abdelmalek, ABC News, 9 Aug. 2022
Noun
Watching cooking shows felt like picking a scab—somehow like relief and suffering at the same time.
—Andrew Chapman, Longreads, 18 Apr. 2024
No need to rip off a scab while the wound is still healing.
—Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 3 Apr. 2024
The seven-year labor agreement marked the end of a denial of employment by PRO and MLS which meant scab workers took to the field to referee games in place of PSRA members for the opening weeks of the season.
—James Nalton, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
As Manus sees it, Trump ripped the scab off the wound of festering populist disenchantment.
—Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2024
From the time someone first notices symptoms until the last pustules scab over and fall off, an mpox infection can take anywhere from two weeks to a month to run its course.
—Stephen C. George, Discover Magazine, 5 Mar. 2024
Eventually the sores will crust over and form scabs, which finally fall off.
—Stephen C. George, Discover Magazine, 5 Mar. 2024
The Instagram Story pic sees Barker's hand covered in blood and scabs, surrounding a particularly wide gash across one of his knuckles.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 16 Oct. 2023
The coming election season, with Trump likely on the ballot, could be enough to pick the scab.
—Jonathan Weisman Benjamin Rasmussen, New York Times, 30 Nov. 2023
Verb
The crust eventually scabs off, leaving a red welt that can sometimes take a few weeks to calm down.
—Mark Hay, SELF, 26 Jan. 2024
Eventually the spots, which initially look like a pimple or pustule, can scab or crust over.
—Dr. Mark Abdelmalek, ABC News, 25 July 2022
Finally, the lesions will scab over and eventually fall off.
—Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2022
The color will darken because your lips will scab as the swelling subsides.
—Jacqueline Saguin, Good Housekeeping, 11 Apr. 2023
Wounds on his knees would scab over and reopen after he was forced to kneel on uncooked rice and concrete.
—James Queallystaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan. 2023
Its wounds stop bleeding, scab over quickly, and shrink by 64 percent within a day.
—Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 26 Sep. 2012
Thwarting the rash could also help people make a swifter exit from isolation, which can stretch for weeks as patients wait for their lesions to scab and heal over.
—Emily Alpert Reyes, Anchorage Daily News, 11 Aug. 2022
After that, the rash goes through phases, including pustules progressing to blisters that eventually scab over.
—Dr. Mark Abdelmalek, ABC News, 9 Aug. 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'scab.' 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
“Scab.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scab. Accessed 23 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
scab
1 of 2 noun1
: scabies of domestic animals
2
: a crust chiefly of hardened blood that forms over and protects a wound
3
: a worker who takes the place of a striking worker
4
: a plant disease in which crusted spots form on stems or leaves
scab
2 of 2 verb
scabbed; scabbing
1
: to become covered with a scab
2
: to act as a scab
Medical Definition
scab
2 of 2 intransitive verb
scabbed; scabbing
: to become covered with a scab
the wound scabbed over
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