scratch (scratches plural & 3rd person present) (scratching present participle) (scratched past tense & past participle )
1 verb If you scratchyourself, you rub your fingernails against your skin because it is itching.
He scratched himself under his arm... V pron-refl
The old man lifted his cardigan to scratch his side... V n
I had to wear long sleeves to stop myself scratching. V
2 verb If a sharp object scratches someone or something, it makes small shallow cuts on their skin or surface.
The branches tore at my jacket and scratched my hands and face... V n
Knives will scratch the worktop. V n
3 n-count Scratches on someone or something are small shallow cuts.
The seven-year-old was found crying with scratches on his face and neck...
4 If you do something from scratch, you do it without making use of anything that has been done before.
from scratch phrase PHR after v
Building a home from scratch can be both exciting and challenging...
5 If you say that someone is scratching their head, you mean that they are thinking hard and trying to solve a problem or puzzle.
scratch one's head phrase V inflects
The Institute spends a lot of time scratching its head about how to boost American productivity.
6 If you only scratch the surfaceof a subject or problem, you find out or do a small amount, but not enough to understand or solve it.
scratch the surface phrase V inflects, oft PHR of n
Officials say they've only scratched the surface of the drug problem..., We had only two weeks to tour Malaysia, which was hardly enough time to scratch the surface.
7 If you say that someone or something is not up to scratch, you mean that they are not good enough.
up to scratch phrase PHR after v, v-link PHR, usu with brd-neg My mother always made me feel I wasn't coming up to scratch.
scratch card (scratch cards plural ), scratchcard A scratch card is a card with hidden words or symbols on it. You scratch the surface off to reveal the words or symbols and find out if you have won a prize. n-count
scratch file (scratch files plural )A scratch file is a temporary computer file which you use as a work area or as a store while a program is operating. (COMPUTING) n-count
scratch pad (scratch pads plural )A scratch pad is a temporary storage memory in a computer. (COMPUTING) n-count