[skram-buh
l] 
verb, -bled, -bling, noun | 1. | to climb or move quickly using one's hands and feet, as down a rough incline. |
| 2. | to compete or struggle with others for possession or gain: The children scrambled for the coins we tossed. |
| 3. | to move hastily and with urgency: She scrambled into her coat and ran out the door. |
| 4. | Military. (of pilots or aircraft) to take off as quickly as possible to intercept enemy planes. |
| 5. | to collect or organize (things) in a hurried or disorderly manner (often fol. by together or up): He scrambled the papers up from the desk. I scrambled the report together at the last minute. |
| 6. | to mix together confusedly: The teacher has hopelessly scrambled our names and faces. |
| 7. | to cause to move hastily, as if in panic: He scrambled everyone out of the burning building. |
| 8. | to cook (eggs) in a pan while stirring, usually after mixing whites and yolks together. |
| 9. | to make (a radio or telephonic message) incomprehensible to interceptors by systematically changing the transmission frequencies. |
| 10. | to mix the elements of (a television signal) so that only subscribers with a decoding box can receive the signal. |
| 11. | Military. to cause (an intercepting aircraft or pilot) to take off in the shortest possible time, in response to an alert. |
| 12. | a quick climb or progression over rough, irregular ground. |
| 13. | a struggle for possession or gain: a scramble for choice seats in the stadium. |
| 14. | any disorderly or hasty struggle or proceeding. |
| 15. | Military. an emergency takeoff of interceptors performed in the shortest possible time. |
| mo·to·cross (mō'tō-krôs', -krŏs') n. Abbr. MX A cross-country motorcycle race over a closed course of rough terrain with steep hills and sharp curves. Also called scramble. [French moto-cross : moto, motorcycle (short for motocyclette, from moto-, motor, from moteur, from Latin mōtor, mover; see motor) + English cross(-country).] |
| scram·ble (skrām'bəl) v. scram·bled, scram·bling, scram·bles v. intr.
[Perhaps blend of obsolete scamble, to struggle for, and dialectal cramble, to crawl.] |
