scrounge
UK[skraʊndʒ]US[skraʊndʒ]
v
To get something, especially money or food, by asking for it instead of buying it or working for it.
v
To search for and find something you need, often with difficulty.
Etymology
The verb 'scrounge' emerged in British military slang around the early 20th century, its precise origins obscured by colloquial use. It is likely a variant blend of the dialectal English verb 'scrunge', meaning to steal, and the word 'scrouge', an old variant of 'scrooge' or 'scrouge' meaning to squeeze or press. This etymological blend captures the word's core action: to squeeze or press someone (figuratively through pleading) to obtain something, or to press oneself into a situation to hunt for items. From these literal notions of pressing and stealing, the meaning softened into its modern, less criminal senses of obtaining through begging or foraging.
Analysis
The word 'scrounge' is a simplex word of uncertain origin, likely a blend or alteration of existing English dialectal words. It does not have clear, separable morphemes within its modern spelling.
Examples
He's always scrounging cigarettes off his colleagues.
I managed to scrounge some old wood to build a shelf.
Can I scrounge a pen from you? Mine seems to have disappeared.