scratched
UK[skrætʃt]US[skrætʃt]
v
to rub your skin with your nails, often because it itches
v
to make a slight cut or long, thin mark on a surface or skin with something sharp
v
to remove something from a surface by rubbing it with something sharp or rough
v
to decide not to do something that you had planned
Morpheme Breakdown
scratch
ed
scratch
to scrape
ed
past tense/participle suffix
Etymology
the verb 'scratch' entered middle english from a convergence of two similar old english verbs, 'cratchen' and 'scratten', both imitative of the sound and action of scraping or clawing. these are believed to have germanic roots, possibly related to the old high german 'krazzon', meaning to scratch. the modern form 'scratched' is built by simply appending the common germanic past tense suffix '-ed', which has been the standard marker for regular verbs in english since old english. thus, 'scratched' directly conveys the completed action of making a scraping mark or abrasion, its form and core meaning faithfully preserved from its onomatopoeic origins.
Analysis
Structure: scratch (to scrape) + ed (past tense/participle suffix)
scratch (middle english, from a blend of 'cratchen' meaning to scratch and 'scratten' meaning to scratch, likely of germanic origin); ed (old english, past tense and past participle suffix for weak verbs).
Examples
the cat scratched the sofa leg.
he scratched his head, puzzled by the difficult question.
we had to scratch our vacation plans due to the bad weather forecast.