scabrous

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective scabrous contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of scabrous are harsh, rough, rugged, and uneven. While all these words mean "not smooth or even," scabrous implies scaliness or prickliness of surface.

a scabrous leaf

Where would harsh be a reasonable alternative to scabrous?

The meanings of harsh and scabrous largely overlap; however, harsh implies a surface or texture distinctly unpleasant to the touch.

a harsh fabric that chafes the skin

When would rough be a good substitute for scabrous?

While in some cases nearly identical to scabrous, rough implies points, bristles, ridges, or projections on the surface.

a rough wooden board

When could rugged be used to replace scabrous?

While the synonyms rugged and scabrous are close in meaning, rugged implies irregularity or roughness of land surface and connotes difficulty of travel.

a rugged landscape

When is it sensible to use uneven instead of scabrous?

The words uneven and scabrous can be used in similar contexts, but uneven implies a lack of uniformity in height, breadth, or quality.

an old house with uneven floors

Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of scabrous This dirty Pommie duo make scabrous gold on UK Grim, their 12th studio album. Spin Staff, SPIN, 12 Dec. 2023 Brined for 24 hours, the halal chicken is enveloped in a rub whose 15 or so ingredients transform the skin into something scabrous, charred and unnerving. Tim Carman, Washington Post, 9 Oct. 2023 Nothing about this frequently brilliant but wildly contorted film is easy, neither working through the knotted narrative, nor trying to find a clear moral throughline amidst all the snide and scabrous nihilism. Jessica Kiang, Variety, 31 Aug. 2023 His scabrous skewering of late-night weekend comedy proved more hypnotic — and funny — than anything on late-night weekend comedy. Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 31 Aug. 2023 See all Example Sentences for scabrous 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scabrous
Adjective
  • If not, look for Fred Warner to revert into early-season MVP mode as his troublesome ankle and steely mindset recharge over the bye.
    Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 1 Nov. 2024
  • But the Polaris Dawn mission — a five-day journey to orbit carried out by the private sector rather than NASA — sought to take that research further, hoping to unravel some of the most troublesome aspects of spaceflight.
    Jackie Wattles, CNN, 25 Oct. 2024
Adjective
  • Reconciliation and coming to terms with vexing or enraging issues is hard work.
    Marco Rubio, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024
  • One reason the question can be so vexing is because unlike solar panels, tax incentives don’t help offset underlying roof issues — even when addressing them is done while going solar.
    Tik Root / Grist, Quartz, 19 Oct. 2024
Adjective
  • Since taking office some 100 days ago Keir Starmer’s government has faltered, derailed by the challenge of race riots, minor, vexatious scandals over gifts to Labour ministers and the sheer magnitude of the task of turning around the UK economy.
    Mike O'Sullivan, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024
  • Charting Germany’s shifting relations with the great powers has been Merkel’s most vexatious challenge of all.
    Constanze Stelzenmüller, Foreign Affairs, 20 Apr. 2021
Adjective
  • McCaffrey hadn’t played since the Super Bowl in Las Vegas while battling a stubborn case of Achilles tendinitis.
    Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 10 Nov. 2024
  • You might be tempted to whip out your strongest acne-fighting products to destroy your stubborn zit.
    Jenna Ryu, SELF, 1 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • The lack of emphasis on healthcare this election cycle is worrisome to clinicians who are witnessing the plethora of healthcare system struggles.
    Adaira Landry, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024
  • What was once hidden in the darkest corners of the internet now seems quite easily accessible—and, equally worrisome, very difficult to stamp out.
    Caroline Mimbs Nyce, The Atlantic, 18 Oct. 2024
Adjective
  • The relationship between cannabis use and other substance use behaviors is complex and multifaceted.
    Tribune Content Agency, The Mercury News, 14 Nov. 2024
  • But with practice, these simple actions evolved into more complex behaviors, such as steering the car toward a specific destination.
    Kelly Lambert, Discover Magazine, 14 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • In retrospect, the integer distance problem was waiting for mathematicians who were willing to consider more unruly curves than hyperbolas and then draw on recondite tools from algebraic geometry and number theory to tame them.
    Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 1 Apr. 2024
  • But a few key paragraphs within the 88-page filing mention the exclusion and social shaming of non-iPhone users confined inside green chat bubbles, distinguishing this case from some of the more recondite explanations of tech market competition in recent years.
    Lauren Goode, WIRED, 24 Mar. 2024
Adjective
  • The artist born in 1988 is known for her large-format, abstract charcoal drawings.
    The Editors of ARTnews, ARTnews.com, 5 Nov. 2024
  • Before cuneiform, however, there was an archaic script using abstract pictographic signs called proto-cuneiform.
    Ashley Strickland, CNN, 5 Nov. 2024

Thesaurus Entries Near scabrous

Cite this Entry

“Scabrous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scabrous. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

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