Crossword Dictionary

The Crossword Dictionary explains the answers for the crossword clue 'Hard'. If more than one Crossword Definition exists for a clue they will all be shown below. Links to Crossword Dictionary entries can be found when searching for clues using the Crossword Solver - Hard
SCABROUS (8)

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 

wordplays

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."

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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.

etymonline

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