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scrimshank

American  
[skrim-shangk] / ˈskrɪmˌʃæŋk /

verb (used without object)

British Slang.

  1. to avoid one's obligations or share of work, especially in the military; shirk.

    He was unpopular in the squad because he scrimshanked whenever he could.
scrimshank British  
/ ˈskrɪmˌʃæŋk /

verb

  1. slang (intr) military to shirk work

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • scrimshanker noun

Etymology

Origin of scrimshank

First recorded in 1885–90; origin uncertain

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.