Webster
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Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Scuffle

Scuf′fle, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Scuffled; p. pr. & vb. n. Scuffling.] [Freq. of scuff, v.i.; cf. Sw. skuffa to push, shove, skuff a push, Dan. skuffe a drawer, a shovel, and E. shuffle, shove. See Shove, and cf. Shuffle.] 1. To strive or struggle with a close grapple; to wrestle in a rough fashion.

2. Hence, to strive or contend tumultuously; to struggle confusedly or at haphazard.

A gallant man had rather fight to great disadvantage in the field, in an orderly way, than scuffle with an undisciplined rabble. Eikon Basilike.

Scuf′fle, n. 1. A rough, haphazard struggle, or trial of strength; a disorderly wrestling at close quarters.

2. Hence, a confused contest; a tumultuous struggle for superiority; a fight.

The dog leaps upon the serpent, and tears it to pieces; but in the scuffle the cradle happened to be overturned. L'Estrange.

3. A child's pinafore or bib. [Prov. Eng.]

4. A garden hoe. [Prov. Eng.] Halliwell.

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Noah Porter, editor (Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913). Public domain. Text as transcribed by MICRA, Inc., from Project Gutenberg. Changed for Deep Dive Bible: Greek, which our source spelled in Latin letters, set in Greek letters; entries of one spelling merged into one article; Greek words our source left out (shown as “?”), read from the 1898 printing, from the same plates (the Library of Congress’s copy), where the place could be found with certainty. Of the others, 1,362 (a word or a single letter each) were inferred by AI from the context by the dictionary’s own rules and are marked with a wavy underline (tap or point at one to see the note); the rest, which could not be inferred with confidence, are left as “?”.