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# scab

noun (a scab, scabs)

«scab» in the English dictionary: everyday and in Jewish tradition — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. A hard, dry, dark crust that forms over a cut or graze while the skin heals underneath. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#m1)
2. (old, insult) A worker who keeps working during a strike. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#m2)

### In the lessons

In science and health lessons, a scab forms when blood clots and dries to seal a wound and keep germs out; new skin grows underneath and then the scab falls off by itself. In safety and hygiene, do not pick scabs — it can let germs in and leave a scar. Phrases: «pick a scab», «the scab fell off», «form a scab».

### Examples

- I fell off my bike, and now there's a scab on my knee. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#x1)
- Don't pick your scab or it will bleed again. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#x2)
- The scab fell off and there was new pink skin underneath. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#x3)
- A scab is the body's own plaster. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#x4)
- Chickenpox spots turn into scabs. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#x5)
- Keep the scab clean and dry. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#x6)
- Her elbow had a big scab after the fall. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#x7)
- Scabs can be itchy while they heal. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/#x8)

### Note

Countable. A scab is part of healing, not dirt. If skin around a scab gets red, hot, swollen or full of pus, it may be infected — tell an adult.

## In Jewish tradition

In Leviticus the priest looks at scabs and spots and decides whether the person is unclean. Isaiah uses it as a punishment: God will strike the proud women of Zion with a scab on the head.

**Interpretation.** The tradition understands this skin disease as a sign of a spiritual fault, such as gossip, and not as an ordinary illness. Isaiah's verse is read as a warning that pride and vanity bring humbling.

### Examples

- and for a rising, and for a scab, and for a bright spot; (Torah LEV.14.56, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/scab/#x1)
- or crook-backed, or a dwarf, or that hath his eye overspread, or is scabbed, or scurvy, or hath his stones crushed; (Torah LEV.21.20, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/scab/#x2)
- And the priest shall look, and, behold, if the scab be spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is leprosy. (Torah LEV.13.8, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/scab/#x3)
- Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the LORD will lay bare their secret parts. (Prophets ISA.3.17, JPS 1917) [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/scab/#x4)

### Note

Countable. A scab is part of healing, not dirt. If skin around a scab gets red, hot, swollen or full of pus, it may be infected — tell an adult.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «scab» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scab/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«scab» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/scab.html) on Mova free.
- [Trees and pragmatics of «scab» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/judaism/S/scab/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«scab» in the Judaism dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/judaism/w/scab.html) on Mova free.