scratching (out)

verb

present participle of scratch (out)
1
as in writing
to compose and set down on paper the words of scratched out a poem for his beloved wife on the home front

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in deleting
to show (something written) to be no longer valid by drawing a cross over or a line through it scratched out the old phone number and wrote in the new one

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for scratching (out)
  1. writing
  2. deleting
  3. canceling
Verb
  • Composers devised elaborate systems for writing music that ventured deep into dissonance, away from the rules of tonality that had governed it for centuries.
    — Andy Cush, Pitchfork, 31 Oct. 2026
  • The prompts presented the assistant as a character in creative-writing exercises.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 31 Oct. 2026
Definition of writing
Verb
  • Asep Safrudin, head of the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Agency, said the suspects were being investigated for illegally intercepting communications, accessing electronic systems without authorization and deleting electronic data.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Jessica Alba subtly responded to criticism of her Halloween costume by deleting photos of the look on her Instagram.
    — Lara Walsh, InStyle, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of deleting
Verb
  • While more cities are canceling their contracts with Flock Safety, just as many are discovering how difficult that can be in some instances.
    — Terrence O'Brien, The Verge, 1 Nov. 2026
  • Players generally need around four to six weeks to ramp up for the season, so if a deal hasn’t been reached by this point, canceling games comes closer to reality.
    — Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of canceling
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.

Browse Nearby Words

scratching
scratching (out)
scratch (out)
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Cite this Entry

“Scratching (out).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scratching%20%28out%29. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

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