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scarecrow - 4 dictionary results

scare⋅crow

[skair-kroh]
–noun
1. an object, usually a figure of a person in old clothes, set up to frighten crows or other birds away from crops.
2. anything frightening but not really dangerous.
3. a person in ragged clothes.
4. an extremely thin person.

Origin:
1545–55; scare + crow 1


scarecrowish, scarecrowy, adjective
scare·crow   (skâr'krō')   
n.  
  1. A crude image or effigy of a person set up in a field to scare birds away from growing crops.
  2. Something frightening but not dangerous.
  3. A gaunt or haggard person.

Scarecrow

Scare"crow`\, n. 1. Anything set up to frighten crows or other birds from cornfields; hence, anything terifying without danger.

A scarecrow set to frighten fools away. --Dryden.

2. A person clad in rags and tatters.

No eye hath seen such scarecrows. I'll not march with them through Coventry, that's flat. --Shak.

3. (Zo["o]l.) The black tern. [Prov. Eng.]
Language Translation for : scarecrow
Spanish: espantapájaros,
German: die Vogelscheuche,
Japanese: かかし

scarecrow

device posted on cultivated ground to deter birds or other animals from eating or otherwise disturbing seeds, shoots, and fruit; its name derives from its use against the crow. The scarecrow of popular tradition is a mannequin stuffed with straw; free-hanging, often reflective parts movable by the wind are commonly attached to increase effectiveness. A scarecrow outfitted in clothes previously worn by a hunter who has fired on the flock is regarded by some as especially efficacious. A common variant is the effigy of a predator (e.g., an owl or a snake).

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