scuffle

[skuhf-uh l] /ˈskʌf əl/
verb (used without object), scuffled, scuffling.
1.
to struggle or fight in a rough, confused manner.
2.
to go or move in hurried confusion.
3.
to move or go with a shuffle; scuff.
noun
4.
a rough, confused struggle or fight.
5.
a shuffling:
a scuffle of feet.
6.
Also called scuffle hoe. a spadelike hoe that is pushed instead of pulled.
7.
(in tap dancing) a forward and backward movement of the foot.
Origin
1570-80; see scuff, -le
Related forms
scuffler, noun
scufflingly, adverb
Synonyms
4. scrap, tussle, row.
Examples from the web for scuffle
  • Students should not fight, scuffle, or throw objects inside the bus.
  • Nearly every scuffle was designed to help a gang's chosen candidate into public office.
  • Various scuffle or oscillating hoes are especially useful for weeding under spreading plants.
  • There's another scuffle going on in the set-top box market.
  • Some scuffle across the ice, pushing up little bow waves of snow with their snouts.
  • The officer was stabbed when he tried to intervene in the scuffle.
  • However, every once in awhile, the two dogs will get into a scuffle.
  • In the video the scuffle appears to have set off a scramble of fans.
  • Neighbors who heard a scuffle called the police, who chased the suspect to another building in the housing project.
  • The dogs ran one lynx down and killed it among the rocks after a vigorous scuffle.
British Dictionary definitions for scuffle

scuffle1

/ˈskʌfəl/
verb (intransitive)
1.
to fight in a disorderly manner
2.
to move by shuffling
3.
to move in a hurried or confused manner
noun
4.
a disorderly struggle
5.
the sound made by scuffling or shuffling
Word Origin
C16: from Scandinavian; compare Swedish skuff, skuffa to push

scuffle2

/ˈskʌfəl/
noun
1.
(US) a type of hoe operated by pushing rather than pulling
Word Origin
C18: from Dutch schoffelshovel
Word Origin and History for scuffle
v.

"to push or fight in a disorderly manner," 1570s, probably a frequentative form of scuff, of Scandinavian origin. Related: Scuffled; scuffling. As a noun c.1600, from the verb.

Slang definitions & phrases for scuffle

scuffle

v,v phr
  1. To make one's modest living the best one can; struggle along; get by, scrape along, scruff (1939+ Jazz musicians)
  2. To dance (1950s+ Jive talk)