scabious

1 of 2

noun

sca·​bi·​ous ˈskā-bē-əs How to pronounce scabious (audio)
ˈska-
: any of a genus (Scabiosa) of Old World herbs of the teasel family with terminal flower heads subtended by a leafy involucre

scabious

2 of 2

adjective

1
: scabby
2
: of, relating to, or resembling scabies
scabious eruptions

Examples of scabious in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Adjective
Flowers included meadow grass, ox-eye daisies, iris, rose, clematis, mock orange, scabious, sweet pea, astrantia, martagon lily and love in a mist. — Stephanie Petit, Peoplemag, 7 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English scabiose, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin scabiosa, from Latin, feminine of scabiosus, adjective

Adjective

Latin scabiosus, from scabies

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1603, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of scabious was in the 14th century

Rhymes for scabious

See All Rhymes for scabious

Browse Nearby Words

scabious
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Scabious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scabious. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Medical Definition

scabious

adjective
sca·​bi·​ous ˈskā-bē-əs How to pronounce scabious (audio)
1
: relating to or characterized by scabs
2
: of, relating to, or resembling scabies
scabious eruptions

More from Merriam-Webster on scabious

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about scabious

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Words You Always Have to Look Up
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular Features

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
dog-in-disguise
Rhyme Disguise Quiz Pair up words that look different but sound alike.
See All