Meaning & use
scones
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“scones” is a form of “scone”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meaning
nounplural
Small, lightly sweet baked cakes, often eaten split open with butter, jam or cream.
Grammar: This is the plural form; the singular is scone: a scone, two scones.
Patterns
- scones with jam and cream
- a batch of scones
We had warm scones with strawberry jam at the tea room.
She baked a batch of scones for the school fair.
The scones were so crumbly that they fell apart as I buttered them.
Word forms
| singular | scone |
|---|
Common combinations
- fruit scones
- Fruit scones were served with the afternoon tea.
- bake scones
- He likes to bake scones on Sunday mornings.
- scones and clotted cream
- Scones and clotted cream are a Devon tradition.
- cheese scones
- The cafe sells cheese scones as a savory snack.
- freshly baked scones
- The smell of freshly baked scones filled the kitchen.
Synonyms and how they differ
- biscuits
- American biscuits are soft, savory bread rolls, quite different from the lightly sweet scones of Britain, though the two are related.
- buns
- Buns are softer and yeast-raised, while scones are crumbly and use baking powder.
- teacakes
- Teacakes are British yeast buns with dried fruit, usually toasted, not crumbly like scones.
Word family
- scone noun
- the singular form
- cream tea noun
- a British meal of tea with scones, jam and cream
Commonly confused: scones or scorns?
scones vs scorns
Scorns is a verb meaning treats with contempt and has nothing to do with baking, despite the similar letters.
Practice
At an English afternoon tea, scones are traditionally served with jam and ___.
Choose one answer.
Scones come with jam and cream, as in a cream tea. The other options are savory sauces that do not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “scones”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.