Illustration of strigil
strigil
noun
strig·il ˈstri-jəl 
: an instrument used by ancient Greeks and Romans for scraping moisture off the skin after bathing or exercising
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Instead, the Romans’ post-bath ritual involved anointing the body with oils and scraping excess grease away with a metal or reed tool known as a strigil. 
Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Aug. 2020 As the study notes, the site also yielded two pairs of shoes; fragments of glass vessels; a bronze coin dated to between 198 and 217 A.D.; and a strigil, or curved blade used to scrape oil and dirt off one’s skin. Meilan Solly, Smithsonian, 1 Oct. 2019 Among the trove were two strigils, blunt hooks that Romans used to clean themselves and wipe off oil while bathing and that athletes used to scrape away sweat. Jason Daley, Smithsonian, 13 June 2018 In fact, the strigil was considered the symbol of an athlete in the cultures of ancient Greece and Rome. Jason Daley, Smithsonian, 13 June 2018
Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Aug. 2020 As the study notes, the site also yielded two pairs of shoes; fragments of glass vessels; a bronze coin dated to between 198 and 217 A.D.; and a strigil, or curved blade used to scrape oil and dirt off one’s skin. Meilan Solly, Smithsonian, 1 Oct. 2019 Among the trove were two strigils, blunt hooks that Romans used to clean themselves and wipe off oil while bathing and that athletes used to scrape away sweat. Jason Daley, Smithsonian, 13 June 2018 In fact, the strigil was considered the symbol of an athlete in the cultures of ancient Greece and Rome. Jason Daley, Smithsonian, 13 June 2018 Word History
Etymology
Latin strigilis; akin to Latin stringere to touch lightly
First Known Use
1581, in the meaning defined above