(~es, ~ing, ~ed)
1.
If you ~ yourself, you rub your fingernails against your skin because it is itching.
He ~ed himself under his arm...
The old man lifted his cardigan to ~ his side...
I had to wear long sleeves to stop myself ~ing.
VERB: V pron-refl, V n, V
2.
If a sharp object ~es someone or something, it makes small shallow cuts on their skin or surface.
The branches tore at my jacket and ~ed my hands and face...
Knives will ~ the worktop.
VERB: V n, V n
3.
Scratches on someone or something are small shallow cuts.
The seven-year-old was found crying with ~es on his face and neck...
N-COUNT
4.
If you do something from ~, you do it without making use of anything that has been done before.
Building a home from ~ can be both exciting and challenging...
PHRASE: PHR after v
5.
If you say that someone is ~ing their head, you mean that they are thinking hard and trying to solve a problem or puzzle.
The Institute spends a lot of time ~ing its head about how to boost American productivity.
PHRASE: V inflects
6.
If you only ~ the surface of a subject or problem, you find out or do a small amount, but not enough to understand or solve it.
Officials say they’ve only ~ed the surface of the drug problem...
We had only two weeks to tour Malaysia, which was hardly enough time to ~ the surface.
PHRASE: V inflects, oft PHR of n
7.
If you say that someone or something is not up to ~, you mean that they are not good enough.
My mother always made me feel I wasn’t coming up to ~.
PHRASE: PHR after v, v-link PHR, usu with brd-neg