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scur·vy 
Audio Help [skur-vee] Pronunciation Key noun, adjective, -vi·er, -vi·est.
Audio Help [skur-vee] Pronunciation Key noun, adjective, -vi·er, -vi·est. –noun
–adjective
| 1. | Pathology. a disease marked by swollen and bleeding gums, livid spots on the skin, prostration, etc., due to a diet lacking in vitamin C. |
| 2. | contemptible; despicable; mean: a scurvy trick. |
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
Scurvy
To learn more about Scurvy visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| scur·vy
Audio Help (skûr'vē) Pronunciation Key
n. A disease caused by deficiency of vitamin C, characterized by spongy and bleeding gums, bleeding under the skin, and extreme weakness. adj. scur·vi·er, scur·vi·est Mean; contemptible. [From Middle English scurfy, characterized by scurf (influenced by French scorbut, scurvy), from scurf, scurf; see scurf.] scur'vi·ly adv., scur'vi·ness n. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
scurvy
c.1565, noun use of adj. scurvy (c.1425), variant of scurfy (see scurf). It took on the meaning of Du. scheurbuik, Fr. scorbut "scurvy," the disease characterized by swollen and bleeding gums, prostration, etc., perhaps from O.N. skyrbjugr, perhaps lit. "a swelling (bjugr) from drinking sour milk (skyr) on long sea voyages;" but O.E.D. has alternate etymology of M.Du. or M.L.G. origin, as "disease that lacerates the belly," from schoren "to lacerate" + M.L.G. buk, Du. buik "belly."
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| scurvy | |
adjective | |
| 1. | of the most contemptible kind; "abject cowardice"; "a low stunt to pull"; "a low-down sneak"; "his miserable treatment of his family"; "You miserable skunk!"; "a scummy rabble"; "a scurvy trick" [syn: abject] |
noun | |
| 1. | a condition caused by deficiency of ascorbic acid (vitamin C) |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
| scurvy
Audio Help (skûr'vē) Pronunciation Key
A disease caused by vitamin C deficiency, characterized by bleeding of the gums, rupture of capillaries under the skin, loose teeth, and generalized weakness. |
| The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
Scurvy
Scor"bute\, n. [LL. scorbutus: cf. F. scorbut. See Scurvy, n.] Scurvy. [Obs.] --Purchas.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Scurvy
Scurf\, n. [AS. scurf, sceorf, or from Scand.; cf. Sw. skorf, Dan. skurv, Icel. skurfur, D. schurft, G. schorf; all akin to AS. scurf, and to AS. sceorfan to scrape, to gnaw, G. sch["u]rfen to scrape, and probably also to E. scrape. Cf. Scurvy.]1. Thin dry scales or scabs upon the body; especially, thin scales exfoliated from the cuticle, particularly of the scalp; dandruff. 2. Hence, the foul remains of anything adherent. The scurf is worn away of each committed crime. --Dryden. 3. Anything like flakes or scales adhering to a surface. There stood a hill not far, whose grisly top Belched fire and rolling smoke; the rest entire Shone with a glossy scurf. --Milton. 4. (Bot.) Minute membranous scales on the surface of some leaves, as in the goosefoot. --Gray.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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