Meaning & use
scarab
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountablebiology
A beetle that rolls balls of dung, especially one of the kinds honored in ancient Egypt.
Grammar: Countable: a scarab, many scarabs.
The scarab pushed a ball of dung across the sand.
Scientists watched a scarab navigate by the stars.
A shiny green scarab crawled across the path.
nouncountablespecialist
A small ornament or seal carved in the shape of this beetle, worn or buried in ancient Egypt as a lucky charm.
Grammar: Countable: a stone scarab.
Patterns
- a scarab of something
The museum displays a blue scarab from a royal tomb.
She wore a necklace with a carved scarab.
Archaeologists found a stone scarab inscribed with a king's name.
Word forms
| plural | scarabs |
|---|
Common combinations
- an Egyptian scarab
- He bought an Egyptian scarab at the market.
- a scarab beetle
- A scarab beetle crossed the desert road.
- a carved scarab
- A carved scarab served as a seal.
- scarab amulet
- The scarab amulet was believed to protect its owner.
- sacred scarab
- The sacred scarab symbolized rebirth.
Synonyms and how they differ
- dung beetle
- Dung beetle is the plain descriptive name for the insect and does not refer to the carved charm.
- amulet
- Amulet is a general word for a protective charm of any shape, while a scarab is one particular shape.
- beetle
- Beetle is the large group of insects to which the scarab belongs.
Word family
- scarabaeid noun
- a beetle of the scarab family
- scarabaeus noun
- the Latin name for the sacred beetle
- scarab beetle noun
- the insect itself
Commonly confused: scarab or scrub?
scarab vs scrub
Scrub is low bush land or the act of cleaning hard; it only looks similar.
Practice
In ancient Egypt, a scarab was often worn as _____.
Choose one answer.
Scarabs were carved as amulets believed to bring protection and luck. They were not used as weapons, tools or instruments.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “scarab”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.