Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Scout
Scout
(skout)
, Noun.
[Icel.
skūta
a small craft or cutter.] A swift sailing boat.
[Obs.]
So we took a
scout
, very much pleased with the manner and conversation of the passengers. Pepys.
Scout
,Noun.
[Icel.
skūta
to jut out. Cf. Scout
to reject.] A projecting rock.
[Prov. Eng.]
Wright.
Scout
(skout)
, Verb.
T.
[Icel.
skūta
a taunt; cf. Icel. skūta
to jut out, skota
to shove, skjōta
to shoot, to shove. See Shoot
.] To reject with contempt, as something absurd; to treat with ridicule; to flout;
“Flout ’em and scout 'em.” as, to
. scout
an idea or an apologyShak.
Scout
,Noun.
[OF.
escoute
scout, spy, fr. escouter
, escolter
, to listen, to hear, F. écouter
, fr. L. auscultare
, to hear with attention, to listen to. See Auscultation
.] 1.
A person sent out to gain and bring in tidings; especially, one employed in war to gain information of the movements and condition of an enemy.
Scouts
each coast light-armèd scour,Each quarter, to descry the distant foe.
Milton.
2.
A college student's or undergraduate's servant; – so called in Oxford, England; at Cambridge called a gyp; and at Dublin, a skip.
[Cant]
3.
(Cricket)
A fielder in a game for practice.
4.
The act of scouting or reconnoitering.
[Colloq.]
While the rat is on the
– scout
. Cowper.
In a military sense a scout is a soldier who does duty in his proper uniform, however hazardous his adventure. A spy is one who in disguise penetrates the enemies' lines, or lurks near them, to obtain information.
Scout
,Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Scouted
; p. pr. & vb. n.
Scouting
.] 1.
To observe, watch, or look for, as a scout; to follow for the purpose of observation, as a scout.
Take more men,
And
And
scout
him round. Beau. & Fl.
2.
To pass over or through, as a scout; to reconnoiter;
as, to
. scout
a countryScout
,Verb.
I.
To go on the business of scouting, or watching the motions of an enemy; to act as a scout.
With obscure wing
Scout
far and wide into the realm of night. Milton.
Webster 1828 Edition
Scout
SCOUT
,Noun.
1.
In military affairs, a person sent before an army, or to a distance, for the purpose of observing the motions of an enemy or discovering any danger, and giving notice to the general. Horsemen are generally employed as scouts.2.
A high rock. [Not in use.]SCOUT
,Verb.
I.
With obscure wing scout far and wide into the realm of night.
SCOUT
, v.t.To sneer at; to treat with disdain and contempt. [This word is in good use in America.]
Definition 2024
Scout
Scout
See also: scout
English
Noun
Scout (plural Scouts)
- A member of any of various scouting organizations.
- A member of one of several army units, such as the Selous Scouts or the Arunachal Scouts.
Proper noun
Scout
- A nickname, used for both genders.
scout
scout
See also: Scout
English
Noun
scout (plural scouts)
- A person sent out to gain and bring in tidings; especially, one employed in war to gain information about the enemy and ground.
- An act of scouting or reconnoitering.
- Cowper
- while the rat is on the scout
- Cowper
- A member of any number of youth organizations belonging to the international scout movement, such as the Boy Scouts of America or Girl Scouts of the United States.
- A person who assesses and/or recruits others; especially, one who identifies promising talent on behalf of a sports team.
- (Britain) A college student's or undergraduate's servant; -- so called in Oxford, England; at Cambridge called a gyp; and at Dublin, a skip.
- (Britain, cricket) A fielder in a game for practice.
- (historical, Britain, up until 1920s) A fighter aircraft.
Derived terms
- scoutmaster
- talent scout
Translations
person sent out to gain and bring in tidings
act of scouting
|
member of the scout movement
|
one who identifies promising talent
Verb
scout (third-person singular simple present scouts, present participle scouting, simple past and past participle scouted)
- (transitive, intransitive) To explore a wide terrain, as on a search; to reconnoiter.
- (transitive) To observe, watch, or look for, as a scout; to follow for the purpose of observation, as a scout.
- Beaumont and Fletcher
- Take more men, and scout him round.
- Beaumont and Fletcher
Derived terms
- scout about
- scout around
- scout out
- scout round
- scout up
Translations
to explore a wide terrain
Etymology 2
Of Scandinavian origin. Compare Old Norse skúta, skúti (“taunt”); thus may be related to English shout.
Verb
scout (third-person singular simple present scouts, present participle scouting, simple past and past participle scouted)
- (transitive) To reject with contempt.
- to scout an idea or an apology
- 1610, The Tempest, by Shakespeare, act 3 scene 2
- Flout 'em and scout 'em; and scout 'em and flout 'em: / Thought is free.
- Charles Dickens, David Copperfield
- I don't think I had any definite idea where Dora came from, or in what degree she was related to a higher order of beings; but I am quite sure I should have scouted the notion of her being simply human, like any other young lady, with indignation and contempt.
- (intransitive) To scoff.
- 1851, Herman Melville, Moby Dick, ch. 45
- So ignorant are most landsmen of some of the plainest and most palpable wonders of the world, that without some hints touching the plain facts, historical and otherwise, of the fishery, they might scout at Moby Dick as a monstrous fable, or still worse and more detestable, a hideous and intolerable allegory.
- 1851, Herman Melville, Moby Dick, ch. 45
Translations
to reject with contempt
|
Etymology 3
Icelandic skta (“a small craft or cutter”)?
Noun
scout (plural scouts)
- (dated) A swift sailing boat.
- Samuel Pepys
- So we took a scout, very much pleased with the manner and conversation of the passengers.
- Samuel Pepys
Etymology 4
Icelandic word, meaning "to jut out".
Noun
scout (plural scouts)
- (archaic) A projecting rock.
- (Can we find and add a quotation of Wright to this entry?)
See also
-
Scout (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
-
scout in the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica.
Italian
Noun
scout m (invariable)
- scout; a member of the international scout movement.