as in to depart
to leave a place often for another
I went looking for Sally at the pub, but she'd scarpered
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 scarper
Taylor Tomlinson will host After Midnight, the show that is replacing The Late Late Show now that James Corden has scarpered off to old Blighty.
—
Vulture, 1 Nov. 2023
Idrissa Gueye has scarpered, but that void was instantly filled by Mainz midfielder Jean-Philippe Gbamin - while Moise Kean, goodness knows how, has signed from Juventus to sharpen things up front.
—SI.com, 5 Aug. 2019
Ms Collett compares it to the muggy period before a thunderstorm, when the squirrels have scarpered and the air is pregnant with foreboding of trouble ahead.
—The Economist, 21 June 2018
Vulture, 1 Nov. 2023
Idrissa Gueye has scarpered, but that void was instantly filled by Mainz midfielder Jean-Philippe Gbamin - while Moise Kean, goodness knows how, has signed from Juventus to sharpen things up front.
—SI.com, 5 Aug. 2019
Ms Collett compares it to the muggy period before a thunderstorm, when the squirrels have scarpered and the air is pregnant with foreboding of trouble ahead.
—The Economist, 21 June 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scarper
Verb
-
Lock your home before departing.—
KANSAS CITY STAR WEATHER BOT,
Kansas City Star,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Delta Flight 104, an Airbus A330-300 carrying 272 passengers and 14 crew, had just departed São Paulo/Guarulhos International Airport on Sunday when a mechanical problem struck its left engine, the airline confirmed to Fox News Digital.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Saks Global is one step closer to exiting bankruptcy.—
Madeleine Schulz,
Vogue,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Main Street owned roughly 15 channels, but at one point aired 30 MLB, NHL and NBA teams after exiting bankruptcy.—
Lillian Rizzo,
CNBC,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Prisoners have been moved because of staffing, food, and capacity shortages at the facilities where they were being held.—
Cora Engelbrecht,
New Yorker,
3 Apr. 2026
-
The rain will start to clear out Sunday evening as the front moves through and begins to usher in drier, but cooler temperatures for next week.—
Bill Kelly,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Could a straighter road make cars go faster?—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Mar. 2026
-
To meet his growing costs, Meraj had increased the price of a cup of tea from ten rupees to fifteen, a fifty-per-cent rise (in New York terms, like a cup of drip coffee going from just shy of four dollars to nearly six overnight).—
Nathan Heller,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The move will allow TSA employees to get their paychecks as early as March 30 instead of waiting for back pay after the shutdown ends.—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Hope Harvill got the game winner in the 17th minute off an assist by Paola Granados for the Mustangs.—
Darren Lauber,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scarper.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scarper. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
