scramble
pronunciation
How to pronounce scramble in British English:
UK [ˈskræmbl]
How to pronounce scramble in American English:
US [ˈskræmbl]
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- Noun:
- an unceremonious and disorganized struggle
- rushing about hastily in an undignified way
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- Verb:
- to move hurriedly
- climb awkwardly, as if by scrambling
- bring into random order
- stir vigorously
- make unintelligible
Word Origin
- scramble (v.)
- 1580s (intransitive), perhaps a nasalized variant of scrabble (v.), in its sense of "to struggle, to scrape quickly." Transitive sense "to stir or toss together randomly" is from 1822. Broadcasting sense "to make unintelligible" is attested from 1927. Related: Scrambled; scrambling. Scrambled eggs first recorded 1843.
- scramble (n.)
- 1670s, "an eager, rude contest or struggle," from scramble (v.). Meaning "a walk or ramble involving clambering and struggling with obstacles" is from 1755. Meaning "rapid take-off" first recorded 1940, R.A.F. slang.
Example
- 1. So-called polymorphic viruses employ encryption to scramble themselves .
- 2. That scramble to censor underscores the delicate nature of the scandal .
- 3. They cut a hole in the barbed wire fence so that I could scramble through .
- 4. With time running out , a scramble in front of the uruguay net caught goalkeeper fernando muslera out of position .
- 5. Despite excited predictions of a dangerous scramble for arctic resources , the region 's sovereignty is fairly clearly defined .