Crossword Dictionary
scabrous
scabrous - a
dealing with salacious or indecent material; "a scabrous novel"
lepidote, leprose, scabrous, scaly, scurfy - a
rough to the touch; covered with scales or scurf
The word scabrous can describe anything that's bumpy and coarse, like your pet iguana or the rough stucco walls in your parents' house.
The adjective scabrous is also used to describe things that are considered lewd or obscene, like a scabrous newspaper cartoon that manages to offend everyone who sees it. The Latin root, scaber, means "rough and scaly," and is closely related to scabere, "to scrape."
etymology
1570s, "harsh, unmusical" (implied in scabrously), from Late Latin scabrosus "rough," from Latin scaber "rough, scaly," related to scabere"to scratch, scrape" (from PIE *(s)kep- "to cut, scrape, hack;" see scabies).
The sense in English evolved to "vulgar" (by 1881), "squalid" (by 1939), and "nasty, repulsive" (by 1951). The etmological sense of "rough, rugged, having little sharp points" is attested in English from 1650s. Related: Scabrousness.