scav ‧ enge /ˈskævəndʒ, ˈskævɪndʒ/ BrE AmE verb [intransitive and transitive]
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Origin: scavenger (16-21 centuries) , from scavager 'tax collector, someone who cleans streets' (15-19 centuries) , from scavage 'tax on goods sold' (15-19 centuries) , from Old North French escauwage 'examination' ]
1 . if an animal scavenges, it eats anything that it can find:
Pigs scavenged among the rubbish.
scavenge for
rats scavenging for food
2 . if someone scavenges, they search through things that other people do not want, for food or useful objects:
There are people who live in the dump and scavenge garbage for a living.
scavenge for
Women were scavenging for old furniture.
—scavenger noun [countable] :
Foxes and other scavengers go through the dustbins.