scarecrow 
tended to frighten or keep off intruders, or to 
terrify the foolish. 
Cacciacornacchie [It. ], a skar-crowe in a field. 
/Vorto(1598). 
To be ready in our clothes is to be ready for nothing 
else; a man looks as if he be hung in chains, or like a 
scarecrow. Dtkker, Gull's Hornbook, p. 67. 
You, Antonio's creature, and chief manager of this plot 
for my daughter's eloping ! you, that I placed here as a 
scarecrow? Sheridan, The Duenna, i. S. 
One might have mistaken him [Ichabod Crane) for the 
genius of famine descending upon the earth, or some 
scarecrow eloped from the cornfield. 
Irving, Sketch-Book, p. 420. 
2. A person BO poor and so meanly clad as to 
resemble a scarecrow. 
No eye hath seen such scarecrows. Ill not march through 
Coventry with them, that 's flat. Sha k. , 1 Hen. I V. , iv. 2. 41. 
I think she was bewitch'd, or mad, or blind ; 
She would never have taken such a scarecrow else 
Into protection. Beau, and Ft., Captain, ii. 2. 
scarecrow 2 (skar'kro), . [Cf. scart 3 and 
crow 2 . ] The black tern, Hydrochelidon fissipes. 
Pennant. [Prov. Eng.] 
scarefiret Cskar'fir), n. [Also skarefire; < scare 1 
+ fire."} 1. Afire-alarm. 
From noise of scare-fret rest ye free, 
From murders, benedicitie. 
Berrick, The Bell-Man. 
2. A house-burning; a conflagration. Com- 
pare scathefire. 
Used foole-hardily to sallle forth and fight most cou- 
rageously, but came home fewer than they went, doing no 
more good than one handfull of water, as men say, in a 
common skare-fire. 
Holland, tr. of Ammianus Marcellinus (1609> (Naret.) 
This general word [engine], communicable to all ma* 
chines or Instruments, use in this city hath confined to 
signine that which is used to quench scare-fret. 
Fuller, Worthies, London, II. 334. 
Bells serve to proclaim a scare-fire. Holder. 
scare-sinner (skar'sin*er), . [< scare 1 , v., + 
obj. sinner.} One who or that which scares or 
frightens sinners. [Kare.] 
Do stop that death-looking, long-striding scoundrel of a 
scare-ginner [Death] who is posting after me. 
Sterne, Tristram Shandy, v. 76. 
scarf 1 (skarf), n. [Formerly also skarf, also 
scarph, appar. simulating scarf* as a var. of 
scarp 2 ; < Sw. skarf, a scarf, seam, joint, a piece 
sewed to another (cf . Norw.sfca rr, an end or frag- 
ment of a board or plank, = AS. scearfe, a frag- 
ment, piece, = D. scherf, a shred, = G. scherbe, a 
fragment, shard); associated with the verb, Sw. 
skarfva, join together, sew together, piece out 
(cf. in eomp. skarf-yxa, an adz), = Norw. skar- 
va, make even (by adding or taking away), 
equalize, balance, settle (accounts), = Dan. 
skarre, scarf, = AS. scearfian, cut small, shred, 
scrape (the AS. would give E. "sharf, n., "sharve, 
v.), = G. dial. (Bav.) scharben, cut, notch (tim- 
ber), G. scharben, cut small ; appar., with a for- 
mative or addition -/ (-!>), from the same source 
as the nearly equiv. Icel. skor, a rim, edge, 
joint in a ship's planking, a plank, row of 
benches or steps, = Norw. skar, a cut, notch, 
scarf. = Dan. dial, skar, a cut, notch (cf. Icel. 
skari = Norw. skaar = Sw. sk&r, a cut made 
by a scythe, a swath, = Dan. skaar, a cut, in- 
cision, swath, skaare, a cut, notch), whence the 
verb, Icel. skara, clinch (the planks of a boat) 
so that each overlaps the plank beneath it, = 
Norw. skara, join, bring together, clinch (the 
planks of a ship), etc., = Dan. skarre, join, 
scarp; < Icel. skera = AS. sceran, etc., cut, 
shear: see shear. The words from this verb 
are very numerous, and some forms of its de- 
rivatives are confused with others. The sense 
'cut' appears to be due to the AS. ; the sense 
'join' to Scand. The noun scarf, in E., may 
be from the verb.] 1. A cut; notch; groove; 
channel. 
The captured whale is towed to the beach at high tide, 
and a scarf is cut along the body and through the blub- 
ber, to which one end of a tackle is hooked. 
C. M. Scammon, Marine Mammals, p. 63. 
2. In carp., a joint by which the ends of two 
pieces of timber are united so as to form a 
continuous - 
piece ; also, 
the part cut 
away from 
each of two 
pieces of tim- 
ber to be 
joined toge- 
ther longitu- 
dinally, so 
that the cor- 
responding 
r: 
Various Forms of Scarfs. 
5380 
ends may fit together in an even joint. (Dif- 
ferent scarf-joints are shown in the accompa- 
nying cut.) The joint is secured by bolts and 
straps. 
Wee haled aground to stoppe a leake, which we found 
to be in the skarfe afore. Holdout's Voyages, I. 453. 
3. In metal-working, the flattened or chamfered 
edges of iron prepared for union by welding 
or brazing, as in the brazing together of the 
two ends of a band-saw Edye's scarf, a vertical 
scarf with two hooka, formerly much used for beams of 
ships when wood was the material of construction. 
scarf 1 (skarf), r. t. [< Sw. skarfra, join toge- 
ther, sew together, piece out, =Norw. skarva, 
make even, = Dan. skarve, usually skarre, scarf: 
see scarf 1 , .] 1. In carp., to cut a scarf in; 
unite by means of a scarf. See soar/ 1 , n., 2. 
The leak . . . was principally occasioned by one of the 
bolts being wore away and loose in the joining of the 
stern, where it was scarfed. Anton, Voyage, li. 7. 
2. To flense, flay, or remove the skin and blub- 
ber from (a whale) ; cut off from a whale with 
the spade, as blubber; spade; cut in. 
scarf" (skarf), .; pl.scar/,formerlyal8ocra > 
(skarvz). [An altered form of scarp 2 , appar. 
simulating scarf 1 : see scarp'*."} 1. A band of 
some fine material used as a decorative acces- 
sory to costume, and sometimes put to practi- 
cal use, as for muffling the head and face. The 
narrow mantle worn by women about 1830 to 
1840 was of the nature of a scarf. 
Then must they have their silk scarft cast about their 
faces, and fluttering in the wind, with great lapels at 
every end, either of gold or silver or silk, which they say 
they wear to keep them from sun-burning. 
Stubbes, Anatomie of Abuses. 
What fashion will you wear the garland of? about your 
neck, like an usurers chain? or under your arm, like a 
lieutenant's scarf' Shak., Much Ado, it. 1. 198. 
There is a carpet in the next room ; put it on, with this 
scarf over thy face. B. Jonion, Epicuene, iv. 2. 
I ... saw the palace-front 
Alive with fluttering srnrjs and ladles' eyes. 
Tennyson, Princess, v. 
2. A baud of warm and soft material, as knit- 
ted or crocheted worsted, worn around the neck 
and head in cold weather. 3. A cravat so 
worn that it covers the bosom of the shirt, 
whether it is passed through a ring, or tied in a 
knot, or put together in a permanent shape and 
fastened with a hook and eye or a similar ap- 
pliance. See scarf-pin, scarf-ring. 4. Inker., 
same as banderole. 5f. A long thin plate. 
The Vault thus prepared, a scarf of lead was provided, 
some two feet long and five inches broad, therein to make 
an inscription. Fuller, Ch. Hist., XI. vii. 49. 
scarf 2 (skarf), r. t. [< scarf'*, n.] 1. To wrap 
around one, as in the manner of a scarf. 
Up from my cabin, 
My sea-gown scarf'd about me, in the dark 
. Groped I to flnd out them. Shale., Hamlet, v. 2. 13. 
2. To cover with or as if with a scarf. 
Come, seeling night, 
Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day. 
Shak., Macbeth, iii. 2. 47. 
After breakfast Margaret opened the front door to look 
out. Here rose a straight and sheer breastwork of snow, 
five feet or more in height, nicely scarfing the door ana 
lintels. S. Judd, Margaret, i. 17. 
scarf 3 (skarf), n. [Also irreg. (Sc.) scart, skart, 
scarth; < Icel. skarfr = Norw. Sw. skarf, the 
green cormorant.] The cormorant. [Prov. 
Eng.] 
scarf 4 t, n. An obsolete variant of scarp 1 . 
scarfed (skiirft), a. [< . scarf % + -e<P.~) Covered 
or adorned with or as if with a scarf; decorated 
with scarfs or pendants. 
How like a yonnker, or a prodigal, 
The scarfed bark puts from her native bay ! . . . 
How like the prodigal doth she return, 
With over-weather'd ribs and ragged sails ! 
Ska*., M. of V., U. 6. 15. 
scarfing (skar'fing), . [Verbal n. of scarf 1 , r.] 
The act or process of removing blubber from 
a whale. It is done with a spade, in such a way that 
long strips of blubber are continuously unwound from the 
whale spirally, the carcass being turned or rolled as the 
operation proceeds. 
scarfing-frame (skar'fing-fram), w. A device 
for holding firmly the scarfed ends of a band- 
saw while they are being brazed together. 
scarfing-mactiine (skar'fing-ma-shen*), n, A 
machine for shaving the ends of leather belt- 
ing to a feather-edge where they are to be lap- 
ped to form a joint. 
scarf-joint (skarf'joint), n. In carp., a joint 
formed by scarfing. 
scarf-loom (skarf 16m), n. A figure-loom for 
weaving fabrics of moderate breadth. 
scarify 
scarf-pin (skarf'piii), n. Aii ornamental pin 
worn in a scarf or necktie. 
scarf-ring (skarf' ring), n. An ornamental ring 
through which the ends of a scarf or necktie 
are drawn. 
scarf-skin (skarf'skin), n. The epidermis, es- 
pecially the thin, dry outermost layer, which 
continually scales off. Also scurf-skin. 
Not a hair 
Ruffled upon the scarfskin. 
Tennyson, Aylmer's Field. 
scarf-weld (skarf'weld), . A peculiar joint 
made in welding two pieces of metal, as iron, 
together. See scarf 1 , n., S. 
scarfwise (skarf' wiz), adr. As a scarf or sash ; 
hence, crosswise. 
They had upon their coats a scroll or band of silver, 
which came scarfu-ise over the shoulder, and so down un- 
der the arm. Goldwell (Arber's Eng. Garner, I. 478). 
Scaridae (skar'i-de), n. pi. [NL., < Scams + 
-ids.] A family of fishes, typified by the genus 
Scarus. The body is oblong and covered with large 
scales, the posterior of which are angulated ; the head is 
compressed and the jaws are undivided in the middle, 
exposed, and have the teeth mostly coalescent with the 
bone, only the tips being free ; the dorsal has nine spines 
and ten rays, and the anal two spines and eight rays. The 
species are characteristic of the tropical seas, and are gen- 
erally brilliant in coloration. Over 100 are known. They 
attain for the most part a considerable size, many reach- 
Ing a length of 3 feet or more, and as a rale are excellent 
table-fish. They are generally known as parrot-JIshett. 
One of them, Scarus cretensis, was celebrated among the 
Romans for its savoriness. Also Searina. See cut under 
parrot-Jish. 
scarie, w. Same as scaury. 
scarification (skar'i-fi-ka'shon), n. [< OF. 
(and F.) scarification = Pr. escarificatio = Sp. 
escarificacion = Pg. escariftcafao = It. scarifi- 
cazione, < L. scarificatio(n-), later form of sca- 
rifatio(n-), scariphatio(n-), a scratching open, 
scarification, < scarificare, later form of scari- - 
fare, scariphare, scratch open : see scarify.'] In 
surg., the act of scarifying; the operation of 
making several superficial incisions in a part, 
as for the purpose of taking away blood or 
serum. 
scarificatpr (skar'i-fi-ka-tor), n. [= F. scarifi- 
catevr = Sp. escarificador, < NL. scarificator, < 
L. scarificare, scarify: see scarify,] 1. One 
who scarifies ; a scantier. 
What though the scarificators work upon him day by 
day ? It Is only upon a caput mortuum. 
Richardson, Clarissa Harlowe, III. xvii. 
2. An instrument used in scarification. One 
form combines ten or twelve lancets, which are discharged 
through apertures in its plane surface by pulling a trigger, 
so that in passing they make a number of incisions in the 
part to which the instrument is applied. This instrument 
is used in wet cupping. See cupping, n., 1. 
scarifier (skar'i-fi-er), n. [< scarify + -eri.] 
1. One who scarifies, either literally or figura- 
tively. 
I ... have always had my idea that Dlgges, of Corpus, 
was the man to whom my flagellation was intrusted. . . . 
There is an air of fashion in everything which l)igges 
writes, and a chivalrous conservatism, which makes me 
pretty certain that D. was my scarifier. 
Thackeray, Philip, xvi. 
2. An instrument used for scarifying. 3. In 
agri., a form of cultivator with prongs, used for 
Scnri6er. 
a, frame ; *, handles ; d, teeth ; e, wheels ; /, draft-hook. 
stirring the soil without reversing its surface 
or altering its form. Such implements are also 
called hasps, scufflers, and grubbers. 
scarify (skar'i-fi), r. t. ; pret. and pp. scarified, 
ppr. scarifying. [Early mod. E. also scarific. 
scarrifie, scaryfie ; < OF. (and F. ) scarifier = Pr. 
scarificar = Sp. Pg. escarificar (cf. Pg. sarrafa- 
qar, sarjar) = It. scarificare, < L. scarificare, 
a later accom. form of scarifare, scanpliarr, 
scarify, scratch open, < Or. onapi<t>ao6ai, scratch 
an outline, sketch lightly, < aKapiQof, a stylus 
or sharp-pointed instrument for drawing out- 
lines; prob. akin to E. shear, sharp, etc.] 1. 
In surg., to scratch or make superficial incisions 
in: as, to scarify the gums. 
But to scarrifie a swelling, or make incision, their best 
instruments are some splinted stone. 
Capt. John Smith, Works, I. 137. 
