SCABBY Synonyms: 79 Similar and Opposite Words

scabby

adjective

ˈska-bē

Definition of scabby

as in lame

arousing or deserving of one's loathing and disgust that's a scabby trick to play on someone trying to help

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of scabby One of the most common is apple scab, which is a fungal disease that causes dark, scabby spots to appear on the leaves and fruit. — Helena Madden, Martha Stewart, 31 May 2026 Wheat can be treated to remove scabby kernels. — Tom W. Allen, The Conversation, 12 Nov. 2025 Darken and thicken it for old and scabby goop. — Mark Hay, Popular Science, 9 Oct. 2025 There were the same cars on the blocks, the clotheslines, and the scabby back yards. — Jennifer Wilson, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2025 As buzzy, crowd-pleasing indie comedies got snatched up for millions, the festival's scabby mutant black sheep went untouched, until horror-specific streaming service Shudder stepped in. — Charles Bramesco, Esquire, 20 July 2017 People walk up and try to grab a sample with dirty, bleeding, scabby hands not realizing that other people will also be sampling that food. — Abigail Van Buren, Twin Cities, 31 Mar. 2017

Recent Examples of Synonyms for scabby

Adjective

The jokes are still wildly scattershot and frequently, knowingly lame; the production is still cheap and cheerfully scrappy; the whole ragged enterprise is still reliant on the evident affection and chemistry between its players to hold it together.

— Guy Lodge, Variety, 5 Aug. 2026
A couple solid set-pieces, a lame evil corporate villain, a limp Act 1 origin story, and the perfect scene where Pepper performs open-heart surgery on Tony complete the picture.

— EW Staff, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of lame

Adjective

Completing the hat trick in pitiful style, Taking on the World was shot on a shoestring budget, helmed by the man behind Highlander III, and forced to rely on stock footage of real-life footballers.

— Jon O'Brien, Vulture, 26 June 2026
Given the national team’s pitiful demise at the Oval, with New Zealand completing victory on the fifth morning, Ben Stokes’ revival in absentia feels like the only consolation from a miserable week.

— Hector Vickers, New York Times, 21 June 2026

Definition of pitiful

Adjective

Some of the booths included food businesses including bakeries and lemonade stands and a dirty soda booth.

— David Sharos, Chicago Tribune, 3 Aug. 2026
Now condemned and boarded up, cordoned off by sagging tape, dirty roll-up door set to adorn the front pages of tomorrow’s papers.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of dirty

Adjective

Its latest pickup, the Ford Fathom, will cost a downright cheap $28,350, which should set it up to be a massive seller.

— Michael Ballaban, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026
Which explains why even modern-day Russia has recently loaded up with the cheapest possible foreign labor from former Soviet satellite states.

— Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 6 Aug. 2026

Definition of cheap

Adjective

Under its guidance, untold hectares of nasty greenery have succumbed to billions of dollars in herbicide.

— Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
The schedule is nasty, too, with the Wolverines’ first five Power 4 opponents all capable of winning nine or more games this year.

— Scott Dochterman, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of nasty

Adjective

Hashimi’s tale of unflagging effort amid wretched inequality astounds.

— Monitor reviewers, Christian Science Monitor, 23 July 2026
Sixteen children from the same family who were rescued from a dilapidated home in rural Ohio were living in wretched conditions with human waste all around, confined to just one room over much of the past four years, authorities said.

— CBS News, CBS News, 1 July 2026

Definition of wretched

Adjective

To interrogate Fauci now, for absolutely no coherent reason and completely without sense, is shameful and disgusting.

— Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026
The left's most hated author — JK Rowling — has dropped the hammer on the disgusting things that took place at the Indiana Fever-Seattle Storm game earlier this week.

— Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 30 July 2026

Definition of disgusting

Adjective

In fact, an evening walk may help travelers avoid some of the hot afternoon sun since the mean maximum temperatures sits at a whopping 104 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the National Park Service (NPS).

— Michael Cappetta, Travel + Leisure, 3 Aug. 2026
In 2023, that index was just shy of 97, meaning the mean family could afford a home.

— Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 29 July 2026

Definition of mean

Browse Nearby Words

scab

scabby

scabrous

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“Scabby.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scabby. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of scabby

adjective

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