scarify.
To remove thatch (build-up of organic matter on the soil) from a lawn, to dethatch.
Meaning & usage
To remove thatch (build-up of organic matter on the soil) from a lawn, to dethatch.
To make scratches or cuts on.
A combing tool is used to scarify, cross-scratch, or score the surface of a scratch coat or undercoat of plaster.
To make scratches or cuts on. To damage the testa (seed coat) of a seed by cutting, scraping, chemicals, hot water, or fire to allow permeation of water and faster germination.
To make scratches or cuts on. To break up, loosen, or roughen the surface of a field or road or a hard surface.
To make scratches or cuts on. To scratch, etch, burn, or cut designs into one's skin as a form of body modification.
To harrow the feelings.
To scar.
Denude, or lay waste to.
Where this word comes from
From French scarifier, from Late Latin scarificāre, from Latin scarifāre (“to scarify”), from Ancient Greek σκαριφᾶσθαι (skariphâsthai, “scratch”), from σκάριφος (skáriphos, “writing, drawing, sketching”). Unrelated to scar.
To frighten; to scare, to terrify.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree English scare Latin -i- Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-der. Proto-Italic *θakos Proto-Italic *-fakos Latin -ficus Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin -ficō Latin -ificāreder. Old French -ifierbor. Middle English -ifien English -ify English scarify From scare + -ify.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.