1
as in monkey
an appealingly mischievous person
those little scamps are always getting into trouble, but no one has the heart to punish them
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in villain
a mean, evil, or unprincipled person
an insincere and ruthlessly ambitious scamp who was willing to do anything to win the reality show's grand prize
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to botch
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Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of scamp
Elle Carroll, Vulture, 6 Dec. 2021
Sunshine scamps: The Florida Project is a delighful, poignant, dark-and-light movie about kids living on the seedy side of Disney.
—Rebecca Onion, Slate Magazine, 6 Oct. 2017
Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 2 Dec. 2024
Eventually, neighborhood scamps dropped down into the park's stone drainage channel, built in 1934 as a New Deal project and still the park's distinguishing feature, and followed it underground.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 24 June 2024
See All Example Sentences for scamp
Noun
While its individual characters feel largely interchangeable, the movie hums with life and pleasure when Borowczyk lets his nuns twirl around the chapel in a painterly tableau and scamp through the convent.
—Elle Carroll, Vulture, 6 Dec. 2021
Sunshine scamps: The Florida Project is a delighful, poignant, dark-and-light movie about kids living on the seedy side of Disney.
—Rebecca Onion, Slate Magazine, 6 Oct. 2017
Verb
Silvio Berlusconi, that lovable scamp, made the sign behind the back of the Spanish foreign minister, Josep Piqué, at an official picture-taking of the European Union in 2002.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 2 Dec. 2024
Eventually, neighborhood scamps dropped down into the park's stone drainage channel, built in 1934 as a New Deal project and still the park's distinguishing feature, and followed it underground.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American-Statesman, 24 June 2024
See All Example Sentences for scamp
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scamp
Noun
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The organization undertook its first high-profile advocacy effort the following year by exposing the cruel treatment of monkeys in a Maryland research lab.—
DAILY BRIEFING,
AZCentral.com,
22 Aug. 2025
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Remember the monkeys in Pittsburgh that Harvard was going to exterminate because Trump had taken away $75,000?—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
3 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Temuera Morrison plays a terrific villain as the murderous King Kahekili.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
16 Aug. 2025
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Living with the aftermath Smollett in Episode 9 Courtesy of Apple TV+ Lehane never set out to create a simple morality tale with clear heroes and villains.—
JP Mangalindan,
Time,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The former Oregon product threw an egregious pick-six and botched a handoff.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Aug. 2025
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But Bondi botched the matter from the start, a misstep that threatened to turn the President’s base against him.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
18 Aug. 2025
Noun
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One nun's habit was adorned with giant devil's horns.—
Ed Masley,
AZCentral.com,
12 Aug. 2025
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This habit of playing devil’s advocate 24/7 isn’t always malicious—or even intentional.—
Jenna Ryu,
SELF,
4 Aug. 2025
Noun
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But Madsen was born to be the Lee Marvin of the 1990s — the kind of laconic brute who spoke softly and carried a sharp straight-razor.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
3 July 2025
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The novel is often rhapsodic about its alpha brutes, but, toward the end, Frey turns the tables.—
Katy Waldman,
New Yorker,
17 June 2025
Verb
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When Souleymane rehearses his account, in an early scene, Barry admonishes him for blandly reciting (and often bungling) the false facts he’s been given.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
6 Aug. 2025
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Too bad 2016's epic nonstarter bungles its smash-up with spinoff teases, Iron Man 2's government-oversight plot, and whatever Lois Lane (Amy Adams) is doing with that bullet.—
Devan Coggan,
EW.com,
3 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Kealoha was an irreverent rascal on set Everyone on the panel — and several other Lilo & Stitch team members in behind-the-scenes footage — agreed that Kealoha was a force to be reckoned with on set.—
Sharareh Drury,
People.com,
26 July 2025
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The former child actors have grown up since their go-kart derby days on-screen — some have even welcomed their own little rascals off-screen.—
Keith Langston,
People.com,
5 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Items still needed: large play mats, luggage, dolls, toy monster trucks Scampini Linn said she feels affirmed by the generosity of her community.—
Natalie Eilbert,
jsonline.com,
22 Aug. 2025
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His monster homer finally gave the Red Sox some room after a frustrating offensive game in which Boston stranded 14 men on base and went 3-for-19 with runners in scoring position.—
Jen McCaffrey,
New York Times,
22 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scamp.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scamp. Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.
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