Meaning

A rough, disorderly fight or struggle at close quarters..

Definitions by Sense

1. A rough, disorderly fight or struggle at close quarters.
2. (slang) Poverty; struggle.
3. (archaic) A child's pinafore or bib.
4. (intransitive) To fight or struggle confusedly at close quarters.
5. (intransitive) To walk with a shuffling gait.
6. (slang) To make a living with difficulty, getting by on a low income, to struggle financially.
7. A type of hoe, manipulated by both pushing and pulling, with a sharp blade parallel with the worked surface; an instance of this type.
8. (agriculture) To work the soil surface for weeding, etc.

Example Sentences

The Dog leaps upon the Serpent, and Tears it to Pieces; but in the Scuffle the Cradle happen'd to be Overturn'd: […]

It appears the Company had received news that one of their captains had been killed in a scuffle with the natives.

Fights ensued as many England supporters attempted to retreat before some stewards moved in. Intermittent scuffles continued to break out until the section of the crowd where the trouble started was vacated.

But even on the scuffle / The cleaner's press was in my jeans

Certainly a gallant man had rather fight to great diſadvantages for number and place in the field in an orderly way, then ſcuffle with an undiſciplined rabble.

But shiftings and readjustments ensued, as they are sure to do with a walking-party. Cope presently found himself scuffling through the thin grass and the briery thickets alongside the young business-man.

Once a good friend of mine, a fine hoofer who was having trouble getting bookings, ran up to that tree, gave it a big smack, and yelled “Lawd please make me a pimp, any kind of a pimp, long as I’m pimpin’. I’m tired of scufflin’ and my feet are too long outa work.”

Near-synonyms: collinear hoe, collineal hoe (loosely synonymous)

Word Forms

• scuffles
• scuffling
• scuffled

Synonyms for scuffle

Related Words

When Should You Use Scuffle?

Use scuffle when its meaning, tone and grammar fit the full sentence. A synonym is not always a direct replacement.

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