as in scrapping
to put an end to (something planned or previously agreed to)
the outdoor art project was scrubbed when the organizers found out they needed permission from city hall
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Recent Examples of scrubbing
The next day, the neighbor saw that same man scrubbing the steps.
—
Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 23 Jan. 2026
Finish by scrubbing with a sponge and rinsing well.
—Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Jan. 2026
Pull everything out and give your pantry a thorough cleaning, scrubbing down shelves and washing bins and baskets.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 10 Jan. 2026
But trust us, the answer is not scrubbing harder.
—Petra Guglielmetti, Glamour, 6 Jan. 2026
Now, industry eyerolling at the thought of listening faster has existed since the majority of audio storytelling moved from terrestrial radio—where there’s no skipping, scrubbing forward or backward, and certainly no way to speed things up—to podcasting.
—Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
Somebody is in the kitchen scrubbing your cast-iron pan with dish soap.
—Laura L. Davis, Nashville Tennessean, 31 Oct. 2025
Personal data removal services can help reduce your exposure by scrubbing this information from hundreds of these sites.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 30 Oct. 2025
Machitar finally took the boots, picked up a cotton swab and started scrubbing.
—Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Oct. 2025
Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 23 Jan. 2026
Finish by scrubbing with a sponge and rinsing well.
—Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Jan. 2026
Pull everything out and give your pantry a thorough cleaning, scrubbing down shelves and washing bins and baskets.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 10 Jan. 2026
But trust us, the answer is not scrubbing harder.
—Petra Guglielmetti, Glamour, 6 Jan. 2026
Now, industry eyerolling at the thought of listening faster has existed since the majority of audio storytelling moved from terrestrial radio—where there’s no skipping, scrubbing forward or backward, and certainly no way to speed things up—to podcasting.
—Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
Somebody is in the kitchen scrubbing your cast-iron pan with dish soap.
—Laura L. Davis, Nashville Tennessean, 31 Oct. 2025
Personal data removal services can help reduce your exposure by scrubbing this information from hundreds of these sites.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 30 Oct. 2025
Machitar finally took the boots, picked up a cotton swab and started scrubbing.
—Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrubbing
Verb
-
Rocky strains to convey his evolution from scrapping on the streets of Harlem to luxuriating in wealthy, starstruck domestic bliss.—
Mosi Reeves,
Rolling Stone,
19 Jan. 2026
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Lots of coaches are open to moving the portal window, and some are even OK with scrapping the modern version of spring practice for something more aligned with NFL’s OTAs (less contact, perhaps even later in the spring).—
The Athletic College Football Staff,
New York Times,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Goodbye Amazon Go Amazon is abandoning its homegrown physical grocery stores, known as Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh, a humbling end to an effort that began almost ten years ago as the online giant sought to expand its retail dominance into the brick-and-mortar world.—
Alexei Oreskovic,
Fortune,
28 Jan. 2026
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But the sudden thaw in relations with Washington has fueled suspicion among hard-line chavistas that Rodríguez is abandoning the movement’s deeply anti-American ideology.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Weather contributes to several deaths across Indiana Parents on social media were divided on whether school districts made the right move in canceling.—
Heather Bushman,
IndyStar,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Consider opting for these noise-canceling Beats, a brand that’s made the tastemaker’s list multiple times.—
Isabel Garcia,
PEOPLE,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention convened the task force after revoking fireworks licenses held by Devastating Pyrotechnics and BlackStar Fireworks, the other company based at the same Esparto property.—
Daniel Lempres,
Sacbee.com,
28 Jan. 2026
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Miami-Dade County Tax Collector Darial Fernandez said his team is revoking permits obtained through fraud.—
Larry Seward,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Her behavior led to the pilots aborting takeoff.—
Marina Watts,
PEOPLE,
2 Jan. 2026
-
An investigation by the Spanish outlet La Marea uncovered contracts that restricted women’s movements during pregnancy, including clauses prohibiting travel abroad or aborting the fetus.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Instead of repealing the climate scam mandates that are causing exploding energy costs, @MassGovernor is using tax dollars to artificially Band-Aid bills for a couple of months – money which was received through the utility companies (ratepayers) due to mandates!—
Tim Dunn,
Boston Herald,
22 Jan. 2026
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The changes include repealing a prohibition from constructing or operating a nuclear facility without an IDEM permit and repealing the authorization for the commissioner to conduct a public hearing on environmental effects.—
Maya Wilkins,
Chicago Tribune,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scrubbing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrubbing. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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