scribacious 
see ferihc), + -i-ous.] Given to writing; fond 
of writing. [Rare.] 
We have some letters of popes (though not many), for 
popes were then not very scribacioui, or not so pragmati- 
cal. Harrow, Pope's Supremacy. 
scribaciousness (skri-ba'shus-nes), n. Scriba- 
cious character, habit, or tendency; fondness 
for writing. Also scribatiousiiess. [Rare.] 
Out of a hundred examples, Cornelius Agrippa " On the 
Vanity of Arts and Sciences " is a specimen of that scriba- 
tiousiiess which grew to be the habit of the gluttonous 
readers of his time. Emerson, Books, 
scribal (skri'bal), a. [< scribe + -al.~] 1. Of 
or pertaining to a scribe or penman ; clerical. 
This, according to palaeographers who know their busi- 
ness, stands for haberet, and is, no doubt, a scribal error. 
T/ie Academy, No. 801, p. 88. 
2. Of or pertaining to the scribes, or doctors 
of the Jewish law. 
We must look back to what is known of the five pairs 
of teachers who represented the scribal succession 
E. H. Plumptre, Smith's Bible Diet. (Scribes, 3). 
SCribbett (skrib'et), >i. [Appar. dim., ult. < L. 
scribere, write : see scribe.'] A painters' pencil, 
scribblage (skrib'laj), n. [< scribble^ + -age.] 
Scribblings ; writings. 
A review which professedly omitted the polemic scrib- 
blaffe of theology and politics. 
W. Taylor, Survey of German Poetry, I. 352. (Davies.) 
scribble 1 (skrib'l), v. ; pret. and pp. scribbled, 
ppr. scribbling. [Early mod. E. scrible; freq. 
of scribe, v. Cf. OHG. scribilon, write much, 
G. sclireibJer, a scribbler, < OHG. scriban, schrei- 
ben, write: see scribe, r.] I. trans. 1. To write 
with haste, or without care or regard to cor- 
rectness or elegance : as, to scribble a letter or 
pamphlet. 
I cannot forbear sometimes to scribble something in 
poesy. John Cotton, in Letters of Eminent Men, I. 23. 
2. To cover or fill with careless or worthless 
writing, or unintelligible and entangled lines. 
5423 
scribbling 2 (skrib'ling), n. [Verbal n. ofscrib- 
'</<-'. ''.] The first coarse teasing or carding 
which wool or cotton receives, 
scribbling-engine (skrib'ling-en' / jin), . A 
form of carding-engine having one main cylin- 
de7-. and a number of small rollers in contact 
with the upper surface of this cylinder in place 
of top-cards: used for fine, short wool. E. H. 
Kiii glit. 
scribblingly(skrib'ling-li),nrfc. In a scribbling 
way. 
scribbling-machine (skrib'ling-ma-shen"), H. 
Inwooleit-manuf., a coarse form of carding-ma- 
chine, through which oiled wool is passed one 
or more times, preparatory to treatment in the 
carding-machine proper. E. H. Knight . 
scribe (skrib), r. ; pret. and pp. scribed, ppr. 
scribing. [= OF. escrire, F. ecrire = Sp. es- 
cribir = Pg. escrerer = It. scrivere = OHG. scri- 
ban, MHG. schribcn, G. schreiben = MLG. schri- 
ven = D. schrijren = OFries. skrica = OS. 
scribhan, write, = Icel. skrifa (not "skrifa), 
write, scratch, embroider, paint, = Sw. skrifca 
= Dan. skrire, write (in OFries. skrica, and AS. 
scrifan, impose a penance, shrive); = Gael. 
sgriob, sgriobh, write, scratch, scrape, comb, 
curry, etc. ; < L. scribere, pp. scriptus, write, 
draw (or otherwise make letters, lines, figures, 
etc.), write, compose, draw up, draft (a paper), 
enlist, enroll, levy, etc.; orig. 'scratch'; prob. 
akin to scrobis, scrobs, a ditch, trench, grave, 
to scalpcre, cut, to sculpere, cut, carve, grave, 
etc.: see screw 1 ; scalp*, sculp, etc. Connec- 
tion with Gr. aeiv, write, and with AS. gra- 
T 
Every margin scribbled, crost, and cramm'd. 
Tennyson, Merlin and Vivien. 
II. iittrans. To write without care or regard 
for correctness or elegance ; scrawl; make un- 
intelligible and entangled lines on paper or a 
slate for mere amusement, as a child does. 
If Meevius scribble in Apollo's spite. 
Pope, Essay on Criticism, 1. 34. 
scribble 1 (skrib'l), n. [Early mod. E. scrible; 
< scribble 1 , v.] Hurried or careless writing; a 
scrawl ; hence, a shallow or trivial composition 
or article : as, a hasty scribble. 
O that . . . one that was born but to spoil or tran- 
scribe good Authors should think himself able to write 
any thing of his own that will reach Posterity, whom to- 
gether with his frivolous Scrlbles the very next Age will 
bury in oblivion. Milton, Ans. to Salmasius, Pref., p. 19. 
(In the following quotation the word is used figuratively 
for a hurried, scrambling manner of walking, opposed to 
"a set pace," as a scribble is to " a set copy." 
you are come! Long look'd for, come at last. What! 
you have a slow set pace as well as your hasty scribble 
sometimes. Sir H. Howard, The Committee, i. 1. (Davies.)] 
scribble 2 (skrib'l), v. t. ; pret. and pp. scribbled, 
ppr. scribbling. [< Sw. skrubbla, card, freq. of 
skrubba = Dan. skrubbe, scrub, rub, etc. : see 
scrubs.] TO card or tease coarsely; pass, as 
cotton or wool, through a scribbler. 
Should any slight inequality, either of depth or of tone 
occur, yet when the whole of the wool has been scribbled 
together such defects disappear, and the surface of the 
woven cloth will be found to exhibit a colour absolutely 
alike in all parts. 
W. Crookes, Dyeing and Calico-printing, p. 651. 
SCribblement (skrib'1-ment), . [< scribble 1 + 
-ment.] A worthless or careless writing ; scrib- 
ble. [Rare.] Imp. Diet. 
scribbler 1 (skrib'ler), n. [< scribble 1 , v., + -er 1 .] 
One who scribbles or writes carelessly, loosely, 
or badly; hence, a petty author; a writer of no 
reputation. 
Venal and licentious scribblers, with just sufficient talent 
to clothe the thoughts of a pander in the style of a bell- 
man, were now the favourite writers of the sovereign and 
of the public. Macavlay, Milton. 
scribbler 2 (skrib'ler), n. [< scribble^, v., + -er 1 .] 
1. A machine used for scribbling cotton or 
woolen fiber. 2. A person who tends such a 
machine and is said to scribble the fiber. 
scribble-scrabble (skrib'l-skrab'l), n. [A varied 
redupl. of scrabble.] A shambling, ungainly 
fellow. 
By your grave and high demeanour make yourself ap- 
pear a hole above Obadiah, lest your mistress should take 
yon for another scribble-scrabble as he is. 
Sir II. Howard, The Committee, i. (Davies.) 
scribbling 1 (skrib'ling), n. [Verbal n. of scrib- 
blei, .] The act of writing hastily and care- 
lessly. 
fan, E. grave, is not proved: see grave 1 . The 
^ Teut. forms were from the L. at a very early 
period, having the strong inflection; they ap- 
pear to have existed earlier in a different sense, 
for which see shrive, shrift. For the native 
Teut. word for 'write,' see write. The verb 
scribe in E. is later than the noun, on which it in 
part depends: see scribe, n. From the L. scri- 
bere are also ult. E. scribble 1 , scrip?, script, scrip- 
ture, scriven, scrivener, ascribe, describe, inscribe, 
etc., conscript, manuscript, transcript, etc., as- 
cription, conscription, description, etc.] I. trans. 
1. To write; mark; record. [Rare.] 
The appeal to Samuel Pepys years hence is unmistaka- 
ble. He desires that dear, though unknown, gentleman 
... to recall ... the very line his own romantic self 
was scribing at the moment. 
R. L. Stevenson, Samuel Pepys. 
Specifically 2. To mark, as wood, metal, 
bricks, etc. , by scoring with a sharp point, as 
an awl, a scribe or scriber, or a pair of com- 
passes. Hence 3. To fit closely to another 
piece or part, as one piece of wood in furniture- 
making or joiners' work to another of irregular 
or uneven form. 
II. intrans. To write. 
It's a hard case, you must needs think, madam to a 
mother to see a son that might do whatever he would, if 
he 'd only set about it, contenting himself with doing no- 
thing but scribble and scribe. 
Miss Burney, Cecilia, x. 6. (Davies.) 
scribe (skrib), n. [< ME. scribe, < OF. (and F.) 
scribe = Sp. Pg. escriba = It. scriba, < L. scriba, 
a writer, scribe, < scribere, write: see scribe, v. 
In def . 4 the noun is of mod. E. origin, from the 
verb.] 1. One who writes; a writer; a pen- 
man ; especially, one skilled in penmanship. 
O excellent device ! was there ever heard a better, 
That my master, being scribe, to himself should write the 
letter? Shak., T. G. of V., ii. 1. 146. 
He is no great scribe ; rather handling the pen like the 
pocket staff he carries about with him. 
Diclcens, Bleak House, liii. 
2. An official or public writer; a secretary; 
an amanuensis ; a notary; a copyist. 
There-at Jove wexed wroth, and in his spright 
Did inly grudge, yet did it well conceale ; 
And bade Dan Phoebus scribe her Appellation scale. 
Spenser, F. Q., VII. vi. 35. 
Among other Officers of the Court, Stephen Gardner af- 
terward Bishop of Winchester, sat as chief Scribe. 
Baker, Chronicles, p. 276. 
3. Iii Scripture usage : (o) One whose duty it was 
to keep the official records of the Jewish nation, 
or to act as the private secretary of some dis- 
tinguished person (Esther iii. 12). (6) One of 
a body of men who constituted the theologians 
and jurists of the Jewish nation in the time of 
Christ. Their function was a threefold one to develop 
the law, both written and traditional, to teach it to their 
pupils, and to administer it as learned interpreters in the 
courts of justice. 
And he gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the 
people, iv. asked them where Christ shulde be born 
Bible of 1581, Mat. ii. 4. 
scrimer 
4. A pointed instrument used to mark lines on 
wood, metal, bricks, etc., to serve as a guide in 
sawing, cutting, etc. Specifically -(a) An awl or a 
point inserted in a block of wood, which may be adjusted 
to a gage, used by carpenters and joiners for this pur- 
pose. (6) A spike or large nail ground to a sharp point, 
used to mark bricks on the face and back by the tapering 
edges of a mold, for the purpose of cutting them and re- 
ducing them to the proper taper for gaged arches. 
scribe-awl (skrib'al), . Same as scribe, 4 (a). 
scriber (skri'ber), . [< scribe, v., + -cci.] 
Same as scribe, 4. 
scribing (skri'bing), . [Verbal n. of scribe, r.j 
1. Writing; marks or marking. 
The heading [of a cask] has been brought on board, but 
the scribing upon it is very indistinct. 
Capt. M'CKntock, Voyage of the Fox, xiii. 
2. In carp. : (a) Marking by rule or compass ; 
also, the marks thus made. (6) The adjust- 
ment of one piece of wood to another so that 
the fiber or grain of the one shall be at right 
angles to that of the other. 
scribing-awl (skri'bing-al), n. Same as scribe, 
4 (a). 
scribing-block (skri'bing-blok), n. A metal 
base for a scribing- or marking-tool . 
A scribing-block, which consists of a piece of metal joint- 
ed to a wooden block at one end, and having at the other 
a point ; it is useful for marking centres, and for similar 
purposes. F. Campin, Mech. Engineering, p. 66. 
scribing-compass (skri'bing-kum"pas), . In 
saddlery and cooper-work, a compass Having one 
leg, pointed and used as a pivot, and one scoop- 
edge, which serves as a marker. It has an arc 
and a set screw to regulate the width of open- 
ing. 
scribing-iron (skri'bing-i"ern), n. Same as 
scribe, 4. 
SCribism(skri'bizm), H. [<scribe+ -ism.] The 
functions, teachings, and literature of the an- 
cient Hebrew scribes. 
Then follows a section on Scribism, giving an account 
of the Jewish canon and its professional interpretation 
British Quarterly Rev., LXXXIII. 497. 
scrid (skrid), H. Same as screed. [Rare.] 
scriene t, n . An obsolete spelling of screen. 
scrieve (skrev), v. i.; pret. and pp. scrieved, ppr. 
scrieving. [< Icel. skrefa = Sw. skrefva = Dan. 
skrseve, stride, < Icel. Sw. skref = Dan. skrsev, 
a stride; perhaps akin to scrithc, stride, move: 
see seriate.] To move or glide swiftly along ; 
also, to rub or rasp along. [Scotch.] 
The wheels o' life gae down-hill scrievin', 
Wi' rattlin' glee. Burns, Scotch Drink. 
scriggle (skrig'l), . *. ; pret. and pp. scriggled, 
ppr. scriggling. [Prob. a var. of 'scruggle, freq. 
of "scrug, the earlier form of shrug, q. v. ; with 
the sense partly due to association with wrig- 
gle. Otherwise, perhaps ult. < Icel. skrika, slip, 
= OHG. screcchon, orig. spring up, jump, hop, 
MHG. G. schrecken = D. schrikken, cause to 
jump, startle, terrify; cf. G. heu-schrecke, grass- 
hopper.] To writhe ; struggle or twist about 
with more or less force ; wriggle. [Prov. Eng.] 
They skriggled and began to scold, 
But laughing got the master. 
Bloomjield, The Horkey. (Davies.) 
scriggle (skrig'l), w. [< scriggle, v.] A wrig- 
gle ; a wriggling. 
A flitter of spawn that, unvivifled by genial spirit, seems 
to give for a time a sort of ineffectual crawl, and then sub- 
sides into stinking stillness, unproductive of so much as 
the scriggle of a single tadpole. 
Noctee Ambrosianai, April, 1832. 
SCriket, . i. [Early mod. E. also shrike and 
scriek (also screak, q. v.); the earlier (unas- 
sibilated) form of shrike, shriek: see shrike 1 , 
shriek.'} To shriek. 
The litle babe did loudly scrike and squall. 
Spenser, F. Q., VI. iv. 18. 
Woe, and alas ! the people crye and skrike, 
Why fades this flower, and leaues nee fruit nor seede? 
Puttenham, Partheniades, ix. 
scrim (skrim), . [Origin obscure.] 1. Thin, 
strong cloth, cotton or linen, used in uphol- 
stery and other arts for linings, etc. 2. pi. 
Thin canvas glued on the inside of a panel to 
keep it from cracking or breaking. E. H. Knight. 
scrime (skrim), v. i. pret. and pp. scrimed, ppr. 
sorimina. [< F. escrimer, fence: see skirm, 
skirmish.'] To fence ; play with the sword. 
The fellow did not fight with edge and buckler, like a 
Christian, but had some newfangled French devil's de- 
vice of scryming and foining with his point, ha'ing and 
stamping, and tracing at me, that I expected to be full of 
eyelet holes ere I close with him. 
Kinynley, Westward Ho, iii. 
SCrimert (skri'mer), w. [< F. eserinii-iii; a fencer, 
a swordsman, < escrimer, fence : see scrime. The 
AS. xcrimbrc, a gladiator (Lye), is appar. a late 
