scrumn.
/skrʌm/, U.S. /skrəm/, Canadian English /skrʌm/ 1. Rugby.† c. The half back responsible for putting the ball into the scrum, and for delivering the ball to the backline; = scrum half n. at Compounds 2. Obsolete. rare.
a. Originally: a tussle in which players from both teams form a disorderly group and attempt to force their opponents and the ball towards the opposite goal. Later: an act or method of restarting play, esp. after a knock-on or forward pass, in which the forwards from each team pack together, heads down and arms interlocked, and push against the opposing forwards in order to gain possession of the ball when it is put in. Cf. scrimmage n. 3.In Rugby League scrums have been simply a method of restarting play since the 1990s; the teams no longer push against each other to compete for possession of the ball, though the Laws do still technically allow for this.loose scrum, set scrum, see the first element.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > [noun] > scrum
scrimmage1848
squash1857
loose scrummage1874
scrum1876
tight1904
loose ruck1906
set scrum1925
scrum-down1943
1876 Bell's Life in London 22 Jan. 5/3 After kicking off again the ‘scrums’ were unpleasantly near the visitors' goal.
1885 City of London School Mag. Dec. 280 After half-time they played up better and our forwards could do nothing in the ‘scrum’.
1906 St. Mary's Hosp. Gaz. Feb. 23/2 Contrary to expectation, we more than held our own in the scrum and in the open.
1949 Rugby League Football (‘Know the Game’ Ser.) 24 If a player throws the ball in a forward direction to one of his own team, the referee awards a scrum at the place the infringement occurs.
1968 G. Slatter Pagan Game 141 They practised five yard scrums on attack and on defence.
2015 Australian (Nexis) 11 Aug. (Sport section) 36 The Wallabies dominated the scrum.
b. The group of players who participate in the scrum (sense 1a). Also (frequently with preceding specifying word): the group of players from a particular team who participate in the scrum.In Rugby Union the scrum consists of the eight forwards from each team packed together in a 3-4-1 formation. In Rugby League it consists of six players from each team in a 3-2-1 formation; the scrum is usually made up of forwards, the backs sometimes also participating since the 1990s when scrums ceased to be contested.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > [noun] > types of player > specific group of players
back row1881
pack1887
second row1892
scrum1898
1898 Harper's Weekly 2 Apr. 333/2 When our scrum was thoroughly compacted the umpire tossed the ball on the ground between the opposing sets of legs.
1906 D. Gallaher & W. J. Stead Compl. Rugby Footballer vii. 105 In the back row of the scrum we put two of the fastest forwards and two of the best collarers that we can find.
1947 ‘A. P. Gaskell’ Big Game 12 It felt a good scrum though, very compact.
1972 Financial Times 31 Jan. 3/6 When France tried to run from the base of the scrum they were thwarted by the Irish back row.
2014 Independent (Nexis) 13 Oct. (Sport section) 8 Wasps were already a dozen points up when the Bath scrum disintegrated for the umpteenth time.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > [noun] > types of player > player or position
full back1875
goal kick1875
No. eight1876
goalkicker1879
three-quarter back1880
handler1888
three-quarter1889
heeler1892
scrum half1894
lock forward1898
standoff1902
five-eighth1905
hooker1905
threes1905
flying half1906
loose head1907
standoff1908
fly-half1918
fly1921
inside half1921
outside half1921
scrum1921
inside centre1936
flank forward1937
out-half1949
prop1950
prop forward1951
number eight1952
flanker1953
tight head1959
back-rower1969
second rower1969
striker1973
packman1992
1921 J. C. Jenkins in E. H. D. Sewell Rugby Football up to Date ix. 195 L. A. Phillips was a combination half, who was really equally at home as scrum or fly.
2.
a. A chaotic struggle or tussle, esp. one involving large numbers of people; a mêlée; a battle.figurative in quot. 1905.
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society > society and the community > dissent > contention or strife > [noun] > an act or instance of
flitec1000
strifea1225
wara1300
pulla1400
lakec1420
contenta1450
stour?c1450
contentiona1500
pingle1543
agony1555
feudc1565
combat1567
skirmish1576
grapple1604
counter-scuffle1628
scuffle1641
agon1649
tug1660
tug of war1677
risse1684
struggle1692
palaver1707
hash1789
warsle1792
scrabble1794
set-to1794
go1823
bucklea1849
wrestle1850
tussle1857
head-to-head1884
scrum1905
battleground1931
shoot-out1953
mud-wrestle1986
1905 Judy 13 Dec. 590/2 In the modern scrum of parlour games a classic sport is apt to be left in the cold.
1911 Manch. Guardian 4 Aug. 10/6 The Chairman said little people always went to the wall in a severe ‘scrum’, and that ‘scrum’ had now come.
1963 Times 19 Feb. 11/3 A more radical reform in the driving test calculated to lift the standard of roadcraft..to the much higher level demanded by the scrum of the modern highway.
1997 N.Y. Times 17 Oct. a18/2 Small inventors need iron-clad patent protection so that they are not forced into a legal scrum with financial giants.
2007 R. Batten Higher Ground 6 How much more luxurious is it to cross Europe by sleeper train than join the scrum for a seat on a budget airline?
b. A disorderly crowd of people or things. Chiefly with of.
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the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > an assemblage or collection > [noun] > of people or animals > confused
huddle1642
scrum1905
1905 Temple Bar Mar. 294 He had acquired them [sc. his honours] toilfully, wresting them one by one from among the scrum of chicaneering competitors.
1965 P. O'Donnell Modesty Blaise iii. 32 She looked towards the manœuvring scrum at the bar.
1997 Sunday Times 26 Oct. (Travel section) 2/4 A scrum of men in leather jackets were laying flowers at the grave of..a leading figure of the Russian mafia.
2016 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 5 May d1 A scrum of fashion designers, Vogue editors and the celebrities they clamor to dress.
c. Canadian. A short, unscheduled, often disorderly press conference, esp. with members of the government or other politicians, usually taking place immediately after a particular event such as a session of parliament, cabinet meeting, etc.; a media scrum (see media n.2 Compounds 2).
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1965 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 22 Nov. 7/1 The Scrum, as we used fondly to call it—is out...Beginning today, reporters no longer will be permitted to set foot in the corridor outside the Prime Minister's office immediately before, during, or immediately after, a Cabinet meeting.
1976 Medicine Hat (Alberta) News 2 Dec. 10/3 The discussion agenda..suggested there be no ‘scrums’ before the Commons entrances.
1989 Globe & Mail (Toronto) (Nexis) 5 Sept. Mr. Bourassa's handlers now will not allow reporters to ask the premier questions during informal scrums.
1994 D. McLaughlin Poisoned Chalice iv. 90 A quick scrum was suggested and she agreed right away, eager to deal with the issue head-on.
2014 D. J. Paré & S. Delacourt in A. Marland et al. Polit. Communication in Canada vii. 118 In March 2006, the PMO announced its intention to move the cabinet scrums to the lower level of the Centre Block.
Compounds
C1. General attributive (in sense 1), as scrum formation, scrum play, scrum position, scrum work, etc.
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1902 Oxf. Mag. 5 Nov. 46/2 The forwards played about as well as the rest of the team; Cartright being greatly missed, especially in the scrum work.
1917 Stanford Illustr. Rev. Nov. 54/1 In patterning after the scrum formation of the New Zealand All-Blacks, Stanford seems to have hit on the right thing.
1933 N.Y. Herald Tribune 13 Dec. 23/4 Johnstone failed closely in a kick on goal after a scrum penalty.
1950 St. Thomas's Hosp. Gaz. Feb. 31 St. Thomas's attacked again and a series of three-quarter movements with good scrum play gave Boothman the ball.
1973 I. S. Uys For Valour xiii. 126 He played on the wing instead of in his usual scrum position.
1996 Sunday Tel. (Nexis) 19 May The fearsome scrum power of Eastern Suburbs was not enough to overcome the attacking bravado of Eastwood.
2009 Times 21 Mar. (Sport section) 7/2 Rowntree is the England scrum coach.
C2.
scrum cap n. an item of headgear worn to protect the head in a scrum, now typically a padded helmet covering the ears and fastened by a chinstrap.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > [noun] > clothing
scrum cap1896
rugby shirt1902
the world > textiles and clothing > clothing > types or styles of clothing > headgear > [noun] > cap > types of > worn for specific purpose > other
toilet cap1660
rain cap1827
smoking-cap1841
bathing-cap1867
marmot1877
scrum cap1896
ski-cap1937
1896 Fishing Gaz. 21 Mar. 208/3 A skull cap, very much like a football scrum cap, fitting well down over the back of the head.
1917 Harrods Gen. Catal. 449/4 Scrum Caps. All Crochet Work, 3/3 each; all netting, 2/0 each; and Padded Ear Caps, 2/6.
2015 E. Gelman et al. Mini & Youth Rugby iii. 40 Modern scrum caps are made from cell foam padding.
scrum half n. Rugby the half back responsible for putting the ball into the scrum, and for delivering the ball to the backline; the position of this player.Since scrums in Rugby League ceased to be contested in the 1990s, the role of the scrum half has become more similar to that of the stand-off (standoff n. 5), esp. in distributing the ball to and directing other players in attack, typically from a relatively central position near the forwards.In Australia and New Zealand the more usual term is halfback n.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > [noun] > types of player > player or position
full back1875
goal kick1875
No. eight1876
goalkicker1879
three-quarter back1880
handler1888
three-quarter1889
heeler1892
scrum half1894
lock forward1898
standoff1902
five-eighth1905
hooker1905
threes1905
flying half1906
loose head1907
standoff1908
fly-half1918
fly1921
inside half1921
outside half1921
scrum1921
inside centre1936
flank forward1937
out-half1949
prop1950
prop forward1951
number eight1952
flanker1953
tight head1959
back-rower1969
second rower1969
striker1973
packman1992
1894 Referee (Sydney) 16 May 8/2 W. Galloway played a fine game for Randwick..and will doubtless remain the best scrum half in Sydney this season.
1906 D. Gallaher & W. J. Stead Compl. Rugby Footballer v. 69 Wallace played in every position except that of scrum half.
1951 Sport 30 Mar. 6/3 Another surprise ‘cap’ is that of Ike Proctor at scrum-half.
2016 Canberra Times (Nexis) 14 Nov. (Sport section) 47 Scrum-half Gareth Davies scored tries early in the second half.
scrum machine n. a large, heavy device used by rugby players to practise the scrum, designed to simulate an opposing pack and featuring pads to accommodate the players' shoulders.
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1933 Times 3 Feb. 14/2 (caption) A ‘scrum machine.’—Boys of St. Paul's School using the device which has been specially designed for scrummage practice.
1991 P. Gifford Grizz xvii. 241 Wyllie heads towards an old wooden scrum machine, weighted down with petrol tins filled with sand.
2004 Rugby World Feb. 77/2 Rhino took a special scrum machine along to Grange Road and borrowed the Cambridge University pack to test the pressures exerted in the scrum.
scrum pox n. a pustular or vesicular eruption on the skin, esp. of the face, of rugby players, resulting from bacterial or viral infection acquired in the scrum.
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1896 H. G. Armstrong Football Impetigo 3 It is known to the Wellington [College] boys as ‘scrum-pox’.
1979 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 22 Dec. 1629/1 (heading) Scrum-pox caused by herpes simplex virus.
2012 Express (Nexis) 27 Nov. (Sport section) 64 I'm lucky that I don't tend to play against people who have stubble so there's no scrum pox.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
scrumadj.
/skrʌm/, U.S. /skrəm/ Originally U.S. School slang. Now somewhat archaic.
In early use: very pleasant; lovely; delightful. Later of food: delicious. Cf. scrummy adj., scrumptious adj. 2.
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the world > food and drink > food > qualities of food > [adjective] > delicious or tasty
likingeOE
deliciousa1325
liciousc1420
ambrosial?1578
finger-licking1584
toothsome1584
well1598
tastya1617
toothful1622
fine-palated1735
toothy1864
scrum1877
scrumptious1894
nummy1923
delish1953
shiok1978
bess2006
the mind > emotion > pleasure > joy, gladness, or delight > quality of causing joy or delight > [adjective]
hightlyOE
delitec1225
joyful1297
delightablec1300
delicatea1382
gladsomec1386
gladdingc1394
delightfula1400
deliciousc1400
delectablec1415
delighting?a1425
delitousa1425
ravishingc1430
joyous1475
delightsomec1484
wealthlya1500
delectary?c1500
sunny1565
sunshine1594
delighted1595
heartsome1596
joysome1616
gladdening1729
scrum1877
heartthrob1907
dilly1909
delish1915
zip-a-dee-doo-dah1945
1877 Scribner's Monthly May 63/1 ‘Scrum house!’ said Bob...‘I don't think I ever see one so scrum as this.’
1884 M. V. F. Victor Good Boy's Diary v. 39 I don't wonder Skyler is fond of my ant. she is scrum. She will not whip her little boys evry time they do their best an it don't hapen to come out right.
1895 W. C. Gore Student Slang in Inlander Nov. 65 Scrum, prob. from scrumptious, with which it is synonymous.
1914 J. Vaizey Lady Cassandra xxi. 314 It looks—scrum! Why are stray meals always so much more attractive than proper ones?
2012 Sunday Times (Nexis) 4 Mar. (Style section) 50 Delicious and nutritious—scrum!
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
scrumv.
/skrʌm/, U.S. /skrəm/, Canadian English /skrʌm/ 1. Rugby.
a. transitive. To compete for (the ball) in a scrum. Now rare. Cf. scrimmage v. 3c.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > play rugby football [verb (transitive)] > actions to ball
to knock on1642
punt1845
to touch down1859
ground1863
touch1864
scrimmage1871
heel1886
scrum1889
hook1906
tap-kick1960
1889 Evening Post (Exeter) 21 Jan. 4/2 The ball had to be brought back to the ‘50’ flag and scrummed.
1906 Daily Palo Alto (Stanford Univ.) 15 Oct. 1/4 California was..off-side on the free kick. The ball was scrummed on her thirty-five yard line.
2015 W. Sussex Gaz. (Nexis) 22 Jan. Chi [sc. the Chichester rugby team] scrummed their ball and Ed Durkin was alert at the half wheel to pick up and sprint 25 metres to the try line.
b. intransitive. To compete for the ball in a scrum or scrums (scrum n. 1a); to participate in a scrum or scrums. Frequently with adverbs, as well, hard, etc. Cf. scrimmage v. 3b.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > play rugby football [verb (intransitive)] > actions or manoeuvres
pack1874
heel1884
scrum1890
goal1900
drop1905
to give (or sell) the (or a) dummy1907
ruck1910
jinka1914
to drop out1917
fly-kick1930
scissor1935
quick-heel1936
short-punt1937
touch-kick1954
grubber-kick1958
peel1960
corner-flag1962
to chip and chase1970
box kick1977
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > rugby football > play rugby football [verb (intransitive)] > scrummage
scrimmage1876
scrum1890
maul1979
1890 Baily's Mag. Mar. 155 I was really scrumming hard on the outskirts of the heaving mass.
1949 Rugby League Gaz. Nov. 5/2 The referee..ordered the nonplussed players to scrum opposite the linesman while that worthy continued to flag ‘ball-back’.
1987 Rugby World & Post Mar. 16/2 (advt.) We have been unable to scrum the way we want to scrum because people have been injured.
1991 Vancouver Sun (Nexis) 28 Oct. (Sports section) d6 We scrummed well and got enough line-out ball, but we couldn't turn possession into points.
2016 Austral. (Nexis) 30 Nov. (Sport section) 36 Cheika said his side always scrummed straight.
2. intransitive. To move around energetically, in a densely packed crowd or group; to jostle. Frequently with around, round.
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the world > space > relative position > arrangement or fact of being arranged > state of being gathered together > gather together [verb (intransitive)] > crowd together
thickc1000
pressa1350
empressc1400
shock1548
serry1581
pester1610
serr1683
thicken1726
crush1755
scrouge1798
pack1828
to close up1835
to be packed (in) like sardines1911
scrum1913
1913 ‘C. Turley’ Band of Brothers i. v. 47 I wanted to get at Cole, and so, I suppose, did Webster; but everyone else just scrummed round.
1925 A. S. M. Hutchinson One Increasing Purpose i. xxv. 153 The trouble with me is..feeding and frivoling at night and weekends where the masters live and where we scrum at shows.
1939 G. Greene Confidential Agent i. i. 3 A rugger team was returning home and they scrummed boisterously for their glasses.
1948 C. Day Lewis Otterbury Incident iv. 49 Everyone was scrumming around behind him.
2004 Jerusalem Post (Nexis) 10 Nov. 1 Women and children scrummed around a pile of plastic wrapped toys.
3. transitive. Canadian. To question (a person, esp. a politician) in an impromptu press conference or scrum (scrum n. 2c). Also intransitive: to take part in a scrum.
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1981 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 5 Nov. 2/2 Premier William Bennett of British Columbia appeared magically to a group of journalists, and was immediately scrummed.
1991 Gazette (Montreal) (Nexis) 6 July b3 (caption) Constitutional Affairs Minister Joe Clark scrums with media after cabinet meeting.
1995 Canad. Hist. Rev. June 299 Prime Minister St Laurent's reaction in 1953 to the first radio reporter who tried to scrum him on the Hill: ‘Young man, don't you dare do that to me again.’
2004 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 26 May b2/1 Judges seldom deign to scrum, but Ontario Superior Court Judge Warren Winkler couldn't resist the media last week.
2014 D. J. Paré & S. Delacourt in A. Marland et al. Polit. Communication Canada vii. 118 Members of the press gallery regularly staked out the corridors..to scrum with ministers.
Phrasal verbs
to scrum down
1. intransitive. Rugby. To compete for the ball in a scrum (scrum n. 1a). By metonymy: to play rugby. Also with at (of a forward): to play at a particular position in the scrum.
ΚΠ
1921 Aeroplane 9 Nov. 406/2 Getting off-side and not scrumming down are their weak points.
1935 Manch. Guardian 30 Sept. 4/5 His forwards often elected to scrum down when their side had the right to throw in.
1989 Financial Times 24 Apr. 24/4 The two men scrummed down together for University College, Dublin, later competing on opposite teams in senior club rugby.
1994 Times 3 Nov. (Sport section) 44/8 Neath scrummed down five metres out and Jones darted to the blind side, dummied van der Bergh and slid over for a try.
2015 Daily Disp. (S. Afr.) (Nexis) 20 Aug. (Sport section) Prop Corne Fourie will start his first match of the season scrumming down at loosehead.
2. intransitive. To come together in a tightly knit group, as if engaging in a scrum in rugby; (hence) to gather together in a resolute or purposeful way.
ΚΠ
1922 E. Raymond Tell Eng. i. ii. 41 Three of us placed our shoulders against the lower end, while the rest scrummed down, Rugby fashion, in row upon row behind one another.
1969 Guardian 14 Jan. 9/2 Commonwealth leaders scrum down tomorrow to draft the Rhodesian clause.
1996 Herald (Glasgow) (Nexis) 2 July 15 Dozens of reporters and photographers sniffed out the romance and scrummed down outside Miss Rhys-Jones' flat.
2005 D. Reay Climate Change begins at Home iv. 94 John and Kate are scrumming down with, seemingly, the rest of humanity at the local mall.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1876
adj.1877v.1889- give the rush
- give the sack
- give the screaming habdabs
- give the seed furrow
- give the seed furrow to
- give the sele of the day
- give the shirt off one's back
- give the shits
- give the shoot
- give the show away
- give the sick
- give the silent treatment
- give the slip
- gnaw at
- gnaw away
- gnaw in two
- gnaw into
- gnaw off
- gnaw on
- gnaw out
- gnaw up
- gnaw-bone
- gnaw-crust
- gnawable
- gnawbone