[Elamur Dictionary](https://md.dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://dictionary.elamur.ai/free/en/english/scaly/)

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# scaly

adjective (scaly, scalier, scaliest)

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

## Everyday

1. Covered with scales, the small hard flat plates on fish, snakes and lizards. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#m1)
2. Dry and flaky, like skin that is peeling: "scaly skin". [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#m2)

### In the lessons

In science lessons pupils learn that reptiles have dry, scaly skin and fish have scales too; this helps sort animals into groups. In everyday life dry skin can become scaly in winter. In stories, dragons are often scaly. Phrases: scaly skin, scaly tail, scaly legs.

### Examples

- Snakes have scaly skin. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#x1)
- The dragon had a long scaly tail. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#x2)
- Reptiles are scaly and lay eggs. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#x3)
- A bird's legs are scaly. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#x4)
- My hands get dry and scaly in winter. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#x5)
- Crocodiles have thick scaly backs. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#x6)
- The fish felt cool and scaly. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#x7)
- And he lay there on his great green scaly side, panting, and very much out of breath, because he had come such a long way. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/scaly/#x8)

### Note

Comparative: scalier, scaliest. From "scale" (one small plate). Science myth: snakes are not slimy; their scaly skin is dry. "Scale" also means a weighing machine and a ruler-like line of numbers, which is a different word.

## On Mova

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