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Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

scrimmage en · NOUN

Pronunciation

  • (Southern-England) audio
  • /ˈskɹɪməd͡ʒ/ (General-American)
  • /ˈskɹɪmɪd͡ʒ/ (UK)

Etymology

A corruption of skirmish.

Meanings

  1. A rough fight.
    • get caught up in a scrimmage
    • There was an instant of complete silence, but when Tough Bill threw himself on Strickland the lust of battle seized them all, and in a moment there was a confused scrimmage. Tables were overturned, glasses crashed to the ground. 1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, “chapter 47”, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLC:
  2. (US) In some team sports, especially soccer, a practice game which does not count on a team's record.
    • Merchandise sales surged. The spring scrimmage, usually a yawn of an afterthought at Colorado, was packed. 2024 October 4, John Branch, “What Does College Football Have to Do With College?”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC:
  3. In American football or Canadian football, a play that begins with a snap from the center while opposing teams are on either side of a line of scrimmage.

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
scrimmages Number=Plur lexicographic

Deriveds

defensive line of scrimmage · offensive line of scrimmage

Translations (9)

pl bójka (rough fight) · pl awantura (rough fight) · pl scrimmage (play that begins with a snap) · pl bijatyka (rough fight) · bg боричкане (rough fight) · bg меле (play that begins with a snap) · fi tappelu (rough fight) · fi nujakka (rough fight) · nl schermutseling (rough fight)

scrimmage en · VERB

Pronunciation

  • (Southern-England) audio
  • /ˈskɹɪməd͡ʒ/ (General-American)
  • /ˈskɹɪmɪd͡ʒ/ (UK)

Etymology

A corruption of skirmish.

Meanings

  1. To have, or be involved in, a scrimmage.
    • We scrimmaged a few times and then settled into boring drills.
    • Elwood caught sight of a football field where some boys scrimmaged and yelped. 2019, Colson Whitehead, The Nickel Boys, Fleet, page 45:

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
scrimmaged Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part lexicographic
scrimmaged Tense=Past lexicographic
scrimmaging Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part lexicographic
scrimmages Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres lexicographic