Meaning & use
scar
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Meanings
nouncountable
A mark that remains on the skin after a cut or injury has healed.
Grammar: Takes an or the: a scar on his arm.
Patterns
- a scar on something
- a scar from something
He has a long scar on his knee from a bike accident.
The surgery left only a faint scar.
She touched the scar above her eyebrow.
nouncountablefigurative
A lasting emotional or mental effect left by a painful experience.
Grammar: Often figurative and plural: emotional scars.
Patterns
- the scars of something
- bear the scars of something
The war left deep scars on the whole community.
He carries emotional scars from his childhood.
The scandal left a scar on the company's name.
verbtransitive
To leave a mark on skin after an injury, or to cause lasting harm to someone's feelings or appearance.
Grammar: Often passive: he was scarred for life.
Patterns
- scar someone
- be scarred by something
The fire scarred his hands.
The experience scarred her for years.
The cliff was scarred by old mining.
nouncountableBritishregional
A steep rocky cliff or exposed bare rock face on a hill, especially in northern England.
Grammar: Often part of a place name: Scafell Scar.
Patterns
- a limestone scar
Walkers climbed the limestone scar above the village.
A pale scar ran along the hillside.
Birds nested on the rocky scar.
Word forms
| plural | scars |
|---|---|
| third person singular | scars |
| past tense | scarred |
| past participle | scarred |
| -ing form | scarring |
Common combinations
- deep scar
- A deep scar ran across his cheek.
- emotional scars
- The accident left emotional scars.
- scarred for life
- The bite left him scarred for life.
- heal without a scar
- The cut healed without a scar.
- leave a scar
- Stitches can help avoid leaving a scar.
- scar tissue
- Scar tissue formed around the wound.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mark
- Mark is general and can be any spot or stain, whereas a scar is specifically left by healing.
- blemish
- A blemish is a small flaw on skin that may fade, unlike a scar which is permanent.
- wound
- A wound is a fresh injury, while a scar is what stays afterward.
- trauma
- Trauma names the psychological injury itself, whereas a scar is the lasting trace of it.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: scar or scare? scar or scarce?
scar vs scare
Scare means to frighten someone and is a different word; scar is a mark that remains.
scar vs scarce
Scarce means not available in large amounts, and does not relate to marks on skin.
Practice
The deep cut healed, but it left a thin white ______ on his arm.
Choose one answer.
A scar is the mark left after healing. Scare, scarf and scarce are similar-looking words with unrelated meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “scar”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.