scabby
/ˈskæb.i/adjective
scabby is spelled S-C-A-B-B-Y: 6 letters. It appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 92,628th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, scabby means “Affected with scabs; full of scabs” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in scabby?
| Letters | 6: S-C-A-B-B-Y |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 10 million words; the 92,628th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is scabby?
Scabby appears about once in every 10 million words in written English, the 92,628th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce scabby?
- /ˈskæb.i/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-scabby.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of scabby
- scabbier comparative
- scabbiest superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does scabby mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Affected with scabs; full of scabs.
- 2
Diseased with the scab (mange): mangy.
- 3
Having a blotched, uneven appearance.
- 4
Injured by the attachment of barnacles to the carapace of a shell.
- 5
Working against union policies, working to bust unions; in particular, being a scab (worker who crosses a union picket line).
- 6
IrelandUKslangstingy; scrounging.
The chipper was a bit scabby on the vinegar today.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Scabby in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense full of scabs:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does scabby come from?
From Middle English scabby, scabbie, equivalent to scab + -y. Doublet of shabby.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).