scuttled

American  

[skuht-ld] / ˈskʌt ld /

adjective

1. (of a vessel) deliberately sunk, often by opening seacocks or making openings in the hull.

   It is important to ensure that the scuttled vessel is suitably weighted and negatively buoyant so it will sink rapidly and remain stable on the bottom.

2. abandoned, dropped, cut, or thwarted, as a hope, plan, program, etc..

   In the fallout over the scuttled deal, two executives were fired for ethical violations related to the negotiations.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of scuttle.

Etymology

Origin of scuttled

First recorded in 1740–50; scuttle ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; scuttle ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Example Sentences

The girls muttered a few more disparaging comments as they scuttled to get in order.

From Literature

He has scuttled rare disease drugs because, in his view, they aren’t worth the cost since they don’t cure all patients, even if they slow progression and reduce symptoms.

From The Wall Street Journal

With a sneeze of surprise, Fred scuttled away—from rock to rock, tidal pool to sea—until the beach was covered by spiny iguanas munching free seaweed.

From Literature

U.S. skier Jackie Miles was preparing for the 2018 Olympics in South Korea when she crashed in Garmisch, Germany, and suffered a devastating knee injury that scuttled her trip to the Games.

From Los Angeles Times

Rowan had crept away and scuttled upstairs to the room he now shared with Annad.

From Literature

Related Words

• scamper
• scurry