scarves

[skahrvz]
noun
a plural of scarf1.
Dictionary.com Unabridged

scarf

1 [skahrf] noun, plural scarfs, scarves [skahrvz] , verb
noun
1.
a long, broad strip of wool, silk, lace, or other material worn about the neck, shoulders, or head, for ornament or protection against cold, drafts, etc.; muffler.
2.
a necktie or cravat with hanging ends.
3.
a long cover or ornamental cloth for a bureau, table, etc.
verb (used with object)
4.
to cover or wrap with or as if with a scarf.
5.
to use in the manner of a scarf.

Origin:
1545–55; perhaps special use of scarf2

scarf·less, adjective
scarf·like, adjective
00:10
Scarves is always a great word to know.
So is interrobang. Does it mean:
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
a chattering or flighty, light-headed person.

scarf

2 [skahrf] noun, plural scarfs, verb
noun
1.
a tapered or otherwise-formed end on each of the pieces to be assembled with a scarf joint.
2.
Whaling. a strip of skin along the body of the whale.
verb (used with object)
3.
to assemble with a scarf joint.
4.
to form a scarf on (the end of a timber).
5.
Steelmaking. to burn away the surface defects of (newly rolled steel).
6.
Whaling. to make a groove in and remove (the blubber and skin).
Also, scarph (for defs 1, 3, 4).


Origin:
1490–1500; < Old Norse skarfr (derivative of skera to cut) end cut from a beam (hence perhaps a piece of cloth cut off, i.e., scarf1); compare Swedish skarv patch

scarf·er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
scarf1 (skɑːf) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n , pl scarves, scarfs
1.  a rectangular, triangular, or long narrow piece of cloth worn around the head, neck, or shoulders for warmth or decoration
 
vb
2.  to wrap with or as if with a scarf
3.  to use as or in the manner of a scarf
 
[C16: of uncertain origin; compare Old Norman French escarpe, Medieval Latin scrippum pilgrim's pack; see scrip²]

scarf2 (skɑːf) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n , pl scarfs
1.  scarf joint, Also called: scarfed joint a lapped joint between two pieces of timber made by notching or grooving the ends and strapping, bolting, or gluing the two pieces together
2.  the end of a piece of timber shaped to form such a joint
3.  (NZ) a wedge-shaped cut made in a tree before felling, to determine the direction of the fall
4.  whaling an incision made along a whale's body before stripping off the blubber
 
vb
5.  to join (two pieces of timber) by means of a scarf
6.  to make a scarf on (a piece of timber)
7.  to cut a scarf in (a whale)
 
[C14: probably from Scandinavian; compare Norwegian skarv, Swedish skarf, Low German, Dutch scherfscarf1]

scarves (skɑːvz) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
a plural of scarf

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

scarf
"eat hastily," 1960, U.S. teen slang, originally a noun meaning "food, meal" (1932), perhaps imitative, or from scoff (attested in a similar sense from 1846). Or perhaps from a dial. survival of O.E. sceorfan "to gnaw, bite" (see scarf (2)); a similar word is found in a S.African
context in the 1600s.

scarf
"strip of cloth," 1555, "a band worn across the body or over the shoulders," probably from O.N.Fr. escarpe "sash, sling," which probably is identical with O.Fr. escherpe "pilgrim's purse suspended from the neck," perhaps from Frank. *skirpja, from a Gmc. source (cf. O.N. skreppa "small bag, wallet, satchel"),
or from M.L. scirpa "little bag woven of rushes," from L. scirpus "rush, bulrush," of unknown origin. As a cold-weather covering for the neck, first recorded 1844. Plural form scarfs began to yield to scarves early 18c., on model of half/halves, etc.

scarf
"connecting joint," 1276, probably from O.N. skarfr "nail for fastening a joint." A general North Sea Gmc. ship-building word (cf. Du. scherf, Swed. skarf, Norw. skarv), the exact relationship of all these is unclear. Also borrowed into Romanic (cf. Fr. écart, Sp. escarba); perhaps ult. from P.Gmc.
*skerf-, *skarf- (cf. O.E. sceorfan "to gnaw, bite").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary

scarf definition


  1. tv.
    to eat something. : Andy scarfed the whole pie.
  2. in.
    to eat. : I'll be with you as soon as I scarf.
  3. n.
    food. : I want some good scarf. This stuff stinks.
  4. tv.
    to steal or swipesomething. : The kid scarfed a candy bar, and the store owner called the cops.
  5. tv.
    to discard something. : Scarf that thing. It's no good.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Example sentences
Cozy up to colorful scarves and hats that will help you earn your style badge
  this winter.
Students loitered in groups in the main courtyard, bulky scarves wound
  elegantly around their necks.
They'd been screaming and waving their flags and scarves all day.
We also had many hats and scarves on display on mannequin heads.
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