Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To scrape the feet while walking; shuffle.
  • intransitive verb To scrape with the feet.
  • intransitive verb To shuffle or shift (the feet), as in embarrassment.
  • intransitive verb To scrape and roughen the surface of.
  • noun The act or sound of scraping especially with the feet.
  • noun A worn or rough spot resulting from scraping.
  • noun A flat backless house slipper.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A scurf; a scale.
  • noun A light shoe or slipper.
  • To walk without raising the feet from the ground or floor; shuffle: rarely used of an analogous action of the hands.
  • To graze slightly.
  • To roughen the surface of by hard usage; spoil the gloss, polish, or finish of.
  • noun Same as scuft and scruff.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun Prov. Eng. The back part of the neck; the scruff.
  • intransitive verb To walk without lifting the feet; to proceed with a scraping or dragging movement; to shuffle.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Caused by scraping, usually with one's feet.
  • verb To mishit (a shot on a ball) due to poor contact with the ball.
  • verb To scrape the feet while walking.
  • verb To hit lightly, to brush against.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb walk without lifting the feet
  • verb poke at with the foot or toe
  • noun the act of scuffing (scraping or dragging the feet)
  • verb get or become scuffed
  • noun a slipper that has no fitting around the heel
  • verb mar by scuffing

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse skūfa, to push.]

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Examples

  • The shade has a few very light and thin scuff marks but is otherwise like new.

    Boing Boing: September 17, 2006 - September 23, 2006 Archives 2006

  • The less good parts give standard visions of guitar-jazz more amplitude and scuff, which is unremarkable.

    NYT > Home Page By BEN RATLIFF 2011

  • Buying for a quarter and selling for $5.50 with a "scuff" sticker on it is fucking lame.

    blogTO 2009

  • Buying for a quarter and selling for $5.50 with a "scuff" sticker on it is fucking lame.

    blogTO 2009

  • Buying for a quarter and selling for $5.50 with a "scuff" sticker on it is fucking lame.

    blogTO 2009

  • Buying for a quarter and selling for $5.50 with a "scuff" sticker on it is fucking lame.

    blogTO 2009

  • The owner says it's available because she just evicted the last renter, a very bad man who stiffed the pool boy and let his dogs scuff the floors.

    No Place for Holly Golightly Anne Kadet 2011

  • A quick search found a gem of a find with this suggestion: Use a DRY Mr. Clean "Magic Eraser" to rub the offending scuff away without damaging the material.

    Be Prepared For Wardrobe Malfunctions | Lifehacker Australia 2009

  • Other than that a cheesy silicone or metal cover (which you can bang, scuff and/or paint it up). mados123 four12

    Deter Thieves By Uglifying Your Camera | Lifehacker Australia 2009

  • A neighbor would stroll over, hand Charlie a beer and he would stand and scuff and listen.

    War Is A Bad Thing MaryAnne Kolton 2011

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