scabrous
/ˈskeɪbɹəs/
"scabrous" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“scabrous” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Covered with scales or scabs; hence, very coarse or rough.
Corpus desk
Index EN-scabrous · scabrous · English
scabrous · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 8 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "S" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | scabrous |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | /ˈskeɪbɹəs/ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “scabrous” in English
Rare enough to double-check
scabrous is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ˈskeɪbɹəs/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 7 senses are on record.
scabrous doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from Latin scaber (“scabrous, rough; scabby, mangy, itchy”) (from scabō (“to scratch, scrape, abrade”), from Proto-Indo-European *skabʰ- (“to scratch”)) + English -ous; compare French scabreux, Late Latin scabrōsus. The correct English form is scabrous, spelled S-C-A-B-R-O-U-S.
Definition
- 1Covered with scales or scabs; hence, very coarse or rough.
- 2Disgusting, repellent.
- 3Salacious, scandalous; concerning oneself with lurid or lascivious substance.
- 4Of music, writing, etc.: lacking refinement; unmelodious, unmusical.
- 5Difficult, thorny, troublesome, requiring tact.
- 6Covered with a crust of dirt or grime.
- 7Having scabers.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how scabrous appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
After the incident with the gasoline, Noel’s burnt arm remained scabrous and was susceptible to infections.
I was ſurpriz'd to ſee Mars continue quite round, though hardly, to Appearance, disjoin'd from the ſcabrous Edge of the Moon; but that Inſtant I thought it began to loſe its Figure.—Clouds.
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin scaber (“scabrous, rough; scabby, mangy, itchy”) (from scabō (“to scratch, scrape, abrade”), from Proto-Indo-European *skabʰ- (“to scratch”)) + English -ous; compare French scabreux, Late Latin scabrōsus.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.