SCAVENGE

verb (~d; scavenging) Etymology: back-formation from ~r Date: circa 1644 transitive verb 1. a. to remove (as dirt or refuse) from an area, to clean away dirt or refuse from ; cleanse , to feed on (carrion or refuse), 2. to remove (burned gases) from the cylinder of an internal combustion engine after a working stroke, to remove (as an undesirable constituent) from a substance or region by chemical or physical means, to clean and purify (molten metal) by taking up foreign elements in chemical union, to salvage from discarded or refuse material, intransitive verb to work or act as a ~r