scrofulous

American  

[skrof-yuh-luhs] / ˈskrɒf yə ləs /

adjective

1. pertaining to, resembling, of the nature of, or affected with scrofula.

2. morally tainted.

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ˈscrofulous British  

/ ˈskrɒfjʊləs /

adjective

1. of, relating to, resembling, or having scrofula

2. morally degraded

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Other Word Forms

• scrofulously adverb
• scrofulousness noun

Etymology

Origin of scrofulous

First recorded in 1605–15; scroful(a) + -ous

Example Sentences

The critic Elizabeth Hardwick called biography “a scrofulous cottage industry,” adding that it was rarely redeemed by “some equity between the subject and the author.”

From New York Times • Nov. 3, 2021

But there was nevertheless a certain suggestion of holding court: visitors queued up to be transformed by art, like the scrofulous awaiting the king’s touch.

From The Guardian • Apr. 20, 2017

Characters communicate through coded riddles and secret messages; they write pulp fiction with titles "BIEHXIXHEIB" and "The Principatrix of Gnawledge" and the narrative is littered with words like "scrofulous" and "querelophone."

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 4, 2016

In any case they don’t get in his way, which is a mercy, since Mr. Walken’s Carmichael is a scrofulous wonder to behold.

From New York Times • Mar. 5, 2010

The dead man was one of Ramsay’s favorites, the squat, scrofulous, ill-favored man-at-arms called Yellow Dick.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin