scruffnoun
uk/skrʌf/us/skrʌf/scruff noun (NECK)
by the scruff of the/your neck
by the skin at the back of the neck:
Cats carry their kittens by the scruff of the neck.
I took/grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and threw him out of the hall.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
The head & neck of non-human animals
- beak
- bill
- cockscomb
- comb
- crest
- crested
- crop
- dewlap
- horn
- horned
- jaw
- maw
- muzzle
- neck
- nose
- pouch
- proboscis
- snout
- sucker
- tufted
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scruff noun (PERSON)
[ C ] UK informal a dirty and untidy person:
I feel a bit of a scruff in my jeans.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Dirt & untidiness
- a dog's breakfast idiom
- bloodstain
- blot
- clutter
- contaminant
- contaminate
- filthiness
- fleck
- grime
- gunge
- gunk
- muck
- pollutant
- slob
- slovenly
- slut
- smear
- smudge
- speck
- stain
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