scarecrow

[ skair-kroh ]

noun

1. an object, usually a figure of a person in old clothes, set up to frighten crows crow or other birds away from crops.
2. anything frightening but not really dangerous.
3. a person in ragged clothes.
4. an extremely thin person.

scarecrow

/ ˈskɛəˌkrəʊ /

noun

1. an object, usually in the shape of a man, made out of sticks and old clothes to scare birds away from crops
2. a person or thing that appears frightening but is not actually harmful
3. informal.
   1. an untidy-looking person
   2. a very thin person

Other Words From

• scarecrowish scarecrowy adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of scarecrow¹

First recorded in 1545–55; scare + crow ¹

Example Sentences

This lent more than a modicum of weight to the observation once made by Thomas Jefferson: “Experience has already shown that the impeachment the Constitution has provided is not even a scarecrow.”

From Salon

The researchers focused on two key regulators of cell division in Arabidopsis -- proteins called short-root and scarecrow that, together, prompt dividing root cells to make the switch.

From Science Daily

There was still a “For Sale” sign posted on a weather-beaten and leafless tree that resembled a scarecrow warning people to stay away.

From Seattle Times

On the sides of roads in the oil sands, air cannons boom periodically to keep birds away from the vast toxic ponds and scarecrows dressed as oil workers float above them.

From Washington Times

On X, some of the rapper’s fans said that the figure “looks like a fusion of Lil Wayne, Steph Curry, & Bob Marley” and likened it to a scarecrow.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• spectacle