Talk:scratch

Wikipedia Edit History
* (cur) (last) 10:39, 13 October 2005 Fitch (template, added 'scratch space' even though it wasn't in original scratchpad definition) [rollback] [proxycheck] * (cur) (last) 18:23, 9 July 2005 Grenavitar * (cur) (last) 08:56, 11 January 2005 InShaneee (candidate for wiktionary) * (cur) (last) 23:11, 16 July 2004 Beolach

Horse racing
There is a sense in horse racing meaning something like "to remove from compeition before the race". Such a removal is called a "scratching". I don't know if this sense is used in other sports or other contexts. Some info in this horse racing glossary &mdash; Hippietrail 03:34, 21 Sep 2004 (UTC)


 * Arguably above is included in "remove" sense of verb.

Scratch in sports
I agree with the above (and the term is used in other sports too). There's also a "scratch team" which is pulled together from a mix of individuals who don't normally play togther.


 * That might be an adjective or attributive use of a noun sense that I don't think we have. I'll look into it. Thanks. DCDuring TALK 15:59, 7 April 2008 (UTC)

New sense? (matches scratched alight)
"... full of a fizzing dark powder that sounded like a fistful of matches being scratched alight at once."

Which sense does it belong to? Is "scratched alight" a separate verb? --Z 23:47, 6 August 2013 (UTC)


 * It is sense 1, rubbing against a surface. Not a fixed phrase. Compare something like "the wet sponge was squeaked down the wall". Equinox ◑ 13:07, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

Possible missing sense: player's starting time
Chambers 1908 also has "the time of starting of a player". This would seem related to our sense of "a starting line" in sports. I tried searching for "a five-second scratch" etc. but couldn't easily find anything. Equinox ◑ 13:08, 13 November 2023 (UTC)