scavenger
noun
Did you know?
You might guess that scavenger is a derivative of scavenge, but the reverse is actually true; scavenger is the older word, first appearing in English in the early 16th century, and the back-formation scavenge came into English in the mid-17th century. Scavenger is an alteration of the earlier scavager, itself from Anglo-French scawageour, meaning "collector of scavage." In medieval times, scavage was a tax levied by towns and cities on goods put up for sale by nonresidents in order to provide resident merchants with a competitive advantage. The officers in charge of collecting this tax were later made responsible for keeping streets clean, and that's how scavenger came to refer to a public sanitation employee in Great Britain before acquiring its current sense referring to a person who salvages discarded items.
Examples of scavenger in a Sentence
Bygennaro Tomma, science.org, 11 July 2024
But the near extinction of the scavenger birds in India during the 1990s led to the spread of disease-carrying pathogens – and may have killed half a million people, according to a new study.
—Harriet Marsden, The Week Uk, theweek, 22 July 2024
Other peoples in other parts of the globe also have stories associated with the scavengers.
—Debra Utacia Krol, The Arizona Republic, 22 Sep. 2024
The process of decomposition, including the activity of insects and other scavengers that contribute to the breakdown of the body, can also be slowed or halted by freezing temperatures.
—Discover Magazine, 12 Sep. 2024
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Dictionary Entries Near scavenger
Cite this Entry
“Scavenger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scavenger. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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scavenger
noun
from earlier scavager, from early French skawageour "one who collects a tax on goods sold by merchants from another town," from an early French dialect word escauver "to inspect"
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