as in struggle
a forceful effort to reach a goal or objective
it'll be a long scrabble to pull ourselves out of poverty
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in to climb
to move (as up or over something) often with the help of the hands in holding or pulling
we scrabbled up a sand dune to get a better view of the sea
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in to fumble
to search for something blindly or uncertainly
he frantically scrabbled through the storage chest looking for the needed documents
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of scrabble
Oluwatosin Adeshokan, Quartz Africa, 8 Nov. 2019
Across the street from her, a kinetic scrabble of orange and blue runs the height of a five-story brick building like an electric charge.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 27 July 2019
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2024
Relatively recently, humans were scrabbling in the dirt, and hunting for animals, and writing things on cave walls, or later, parchments.
—John Werner, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for scrabble
Noun
In the early 90s, Nigeria’s central government recognized scrabble as a sport.
—Oluwatosin Adeshokan, Quartz Africa, 8 Nov. 2019
Across the street from her, a kinetic scrabble of orange and blue runs the height of a five-story brick building like an electric charge.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 27 July 2019
Verb
There are other ethnic lines drawn among Gotham’s gangs, each scrabbling for a little bit more of the pie that Carmine used to keep mostly for himself.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2024
Relatively recently, humans were scrabbling in the dirt, and hunting for animals, and writing things on cave walls, or later, parchments.
—John Werner, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for scrabble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrabble
Noun
-
What To Know The pope has faced ongoing health struggles which have sparked speculation about decisions by the Catholic Church on the upcoming Easter celebrations.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
1 Mar. 2025
-
At that point, Zelenskyy interjected, bringing up the struggles his country has faced over the last decade, prompting Vance and Trump to shout at the Ukrainian president.—
Molly Nagle,
ABC News,
1 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
The Huskies will likely have a chance to climb back into the rankings before the postseason begins with an exceptionally strong showing at the Big East Tournament.—
Staff And Wire Reports,
Hartford Courant,
10 Mar. 2025
-
The Knight Frank Luxury Investment Index reports that rare whisky prices have surged by 280% over the past decade, while fine wine has climbed 146%.—
Anthony Zhang,
Forbes,
10 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
And Volodymyr Zelenskyy also fumbled the bag pretty hard.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
2 Mar. 2025
-
Arriving in England in 1929, Queenie fumbled around on the edges of the entertainment business, hoping to be an actor.—
Carolyn Kellogg,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Whoever challenges for the Democrat nomination will have half an eye on the national battle, where the economy, security and national pride are likely to outweigh liberal issues.—
William Lambers,
Newsweek,
9 Mar. 2025
-
Just last month at the NFL Scouting Combine, GM Dan Morgan and head coach Dave Canales stressed the importance of battle in the trenches.—
Mike Kaye,
Charlotte Observer,
9 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Kyiv and its allies are scrambling to come up with a plan after US President Donald Trump suspended military shipments to Ukraine on Monday, following his heated Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky last week.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN,
5 Mar. 2025
-
The Consumer Electronics Squeeze: Higher Prices Across The Board The cost of consumer electronics is about to go up, and retailers are already scrambling to manage the fallout.—
Emil Sayegh,
Forbes,
5 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
And now, thanks to this contract, Evans can look to build some more permanence in Montreal.—
Arpon Basu,
The Athletic,
6 Mar. 2025
-
Nauru is not the first country to look to fund climate action by selling passports.—
Laura Paddison,
CNN,
5 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
Building on the success of The Real Housewives of Melbourne and The Real Housewives of Auckland, this second spin-off was created and originally premiered on February 26, 2017 before getting cancelled after one season due to its extreme fights and harsh language.—
Maya Gandara,
StyleCaster,
11 Mar. 2025
-
Ukraine has been buoyed by the U.S. and other Western allies in its fight against Russia since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion in 2022, and the move to cut off aid left Kyiv at a disadvantage and European allies scrambling.—
Jennifer Jacobs,
CBS News,
11 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
Spectators clambered atop rubble and wrecked vehicles to watch the handover, waving Palestinian and Hamas flags.—
Willem Marx,
NPR,
25 Jan. 2025
-
Shares slumped over the summer on concerns over weakness in its theme parks biz — then clambered back up in November on strong earnings results and streaming profits, and Disney’s three-year forecast for EPS growth.—
Todd Spangler,
Variety,
30 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Scrabble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrabble. Accessed 14 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share