scoop

[ skoop ]

noun

1. a ladle or ladlelike utensil, especially a small, deep-sided shovel with a short, horizontal handle, for taking up flour, sugar, etc.
2. a utensil composed of a palm-sized hollow hemisphere attached to a horizontal handle, for dishing out ice cream or other soft foods.
3. a hemispherical portion of food as dished out by such a utensil:

   two scoops of chocolate ice cream.

4. the bucket of a dredge, steam shovel, etc.
5. Surgery. a spoonlike apparatus for removing substances or foreign objects from the body.
6. a hollow or hollowed-out place.
7. the act of ladling, dipping, dredging, etc.
8. the quantity held in a ladle, dipper, shovel, bucket, etc.
9. Journalism. a news item, report, or story first revealed in one paper, magazine, newscast, etc.; beat.
10. Informal. news, information, or details, especially as obtained from experience or an immediate source:

    What's the scoop on working this machine?

11. a gathering to oneself or lifting with the arms or hands.
12. Informal. a big haul, as of money.
13. Television, Movies. a single large floodlight shaped like a flour scoop.

verb (used with object)

1. to take up or out with or as if with a scoop.
2. to empty with a scoop.
3. to form a hollow or hollows in.
4. to form with or as if with a scoop.
5. to get the better of (other publications, newscasters, etc.) by obtaining and publishing or broadcasting a news item, report, or story first:

   They scooped all the other dailies with the story of the election fraud.

6. to gather up or to oneself or to put hastily by a sweeping motion of one's arms or hands:

   He scooped the money into his pocket.

verb (used without object)

1. to remove or gather something with or as if with a scoop:

   to scoop with a ridiculously small shovel.

scoop

/ skuːp /

noun

1. a utensil used as a shovel or ladle, esp a small shovel with deep sides and a short handle, used for taking up flour, corn, etc
2. a utensil with a long handle and round bowl used for dispensing liquids
3. a utensil with a round bowl and short handle, sometimes with a mechanical device to empty the bowl, for serving ice cream or mashed potato
4. anything that resembles a scoop in action, such as the bucket on a dredge
5. a spoonlike surgical instrument for scraping or extracting foreign matter, etc, from the body
6. the quantity taken up by a scoop
7. the act of scooping, dredging, etc
8. a hollow cavity
9. slang.
   a large quick gain, as of money
10. a news story reported in one newspaper before all the others; an exclusive
11. any sensational piece of news

verb

1. often foll by up to take up and remove (an object or substance) with or as if with a scoop
2. often foll by out to hollow out with or as if with a scoop

   to scoop a hole in a hillside

3. to win (a prize, award, or large amount of money)
4. to beat (rival newspapers) in uncovering a news item
5. sport to hit (the ball) on its underside so that it rises into the air

Derived Forms

• ˈscooper, noun
• ˈscoopˌful, noun

Other Words From

• scooper noun
• outscoop verb (used with object)
• under·scoop noun
• under·scoop verb (used with object)
• un·scooped adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of scoop¹

1300–50; (noun) Middle English scope < Middle Dutch schōpe; (v.) Middle English scopen, derivative of the noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of scoop¹

C14: via Middle Dutch schōpe from Germanic; compare Old High German scephan to ladle, German schöpfen, Schaufel shovel , Dutch schoep vessel for baling

Example Sentences

Herders scooping murky water from a small pond in grasslands in South Sudan are well aware of the dangers they face if they drink it.

From BBC

That strayed into recklessness when, leading by two points with five minutes left, England's needlessly elaborate first-phase play went awry and Andrew Kellaway scooped up and sprinted in.

From BBC

Jonathan explained to us how the raging torrent had scooped up trucks parked next door to the Matías family home with one smashing through an external wall.

From BBC

Jack Hartung, Chipotle’s former CFO turned president of strategy, finance, and supply chain, told Bloomberg in July that Chipotle customers would be given two hefty scoops of rice and four ounces of meat.

From Salon

He had the good sense to scoop it back up to secure the score.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• utensil