1
: scabies of domestic animals
2
: a crust of hardened blood and serum over a wound
3
a
: a contemptible person
b(1)
: a worker who refuses to join a labor union
(2)
: a union member who refuses to strike or returns to work before a strike has ended
(3)
: a worker who accepts employment or replaces a union worker during a strike
(4)
: one who works for less than union wages or on nonunion terms
4
: any of various bacterial or fungus diseases of plants characterized by crustaceous spots
also
: one of the spots
scabbed; scabbing
Examples of scab in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
David Cox, WIRED, 27 July 2022
This soon began to weep, then a long, brownish scab formed over it.
—Andrew Cockburn, Harper's Magazine, 22 Aug. 2024
Guy Lodge, Variety, 17 Oct. 2024
The crust eventually scabs off, leaving a red welt that can sometimes take a few weeks to calm down.
—Mark Hay, SELF, 26 Jan. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scab 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
In both countries, if diagnosed, you will be asked to isolate from others until your symptoms are gone—which includes any scabs healing over.
—David Cox, WIRED, 27 July 2022
This soon began to weep, then a long, brownish scab formed over it.
—Andrew Cockburn, Harper's Magazine, 22 Aug. 2024
Verb
Yet as the summer progresses, raw wounds begin to scab over, as father and daughter begin to truly see each other once more — though the film, restrained to the last, holds off on any grandly cathartic embraces or gestures of reconciliation.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 17 Oct. 2024
The crust eventually scabs off, leaving a red welt that can sometimes take a few weeks to calm down.
—Mark Hay, SELF, 26 Jan. 2024
See all Example Sentences for scab
Dictionary Entries Near scab
Cite this Entry
“Scab.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scab. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
scab
1 of 2 noun1
: scabies of domestic animals
2
: a crust chiefly of hardened blood that forms over and protects a wound
3
: a worker who takes the place of a striking worker
4
: a plant disease in which crusted spots form on stems or leaves
scab
2 of 2 verb
scabbed; scabbing
1
: to become covered with a scab
2
: to act as a scab
Medical Definition
scab
2 of 2 intransitive verb
scabbed; scabbing
: to become covered with a scab
the wound scabbed over
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share