Meanings
scrawl1
plural scrawls
- countableuncountableIrregular, poor handwriting; especially, such writing that is illegible.
Synonyms: chicken scratch
- countableuncountableA hastily or carelessly written note etc.
- countableuncommonA broken branch of a tree.
- countableuncommonuncountableThe young of the dog-crab.
present singular third person scrawls · participle present scrawling · participle past scrawled · past scrawled
- intransitiveTo write in an irregular or illegible manner.
- intransitiveTo write unskilfully and inelegantly.
c. 1710-1730, Jonathan Swift (probably), Sandys's Ghost Though with a golden pen you scrawl.
scrawl2
present singular third person scrawls · participle present scrawling · participle past scrawled · past scrawled
- To creep; crawl; to move slowly, with difficulty, fearfully, or stealthily.
T'poor pig what had just scrawled through t'bottom o' t'cart,
1892, Clarke Tum Fowt Sketches, page 40, no. 33 more examples
we will scrape and scrawl, and catch and pull to us all that we may get
November 9, 1550, Hugh Latimer, A Sermon preached at StamfordWhen I saw him scrawlen on the plain, My heart aw flacker'd for't, I was sae fain.
1797 (original possibly 1783), Josiah Relph, Poems by the Reverend Josiah Relph ... With the life of the author and a pastoral elegy on his death; by T. Sanderson, page 13'Cut its throat,' I calls to him, but he didn't, just slashes its forepaw; but it dropt di-rekly, couldn't hardly scrawl out on the bank.'
1896, Francis Hindes Groome, Kriegspiel: The War Game, page 252
Synonyms & antonyms
nounIrregular, poor handwriting; especially, such writing that is illegible.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
scrawl · noun, verb
- Middle Englishscraulen“to spread out one's limbs; sprawl”
- Englishscrawl
Possibly from Middle English scraulen (“to spread out one's limbs; sprawl”), itself an alteration of spraulen (“to sprawl”) or craulen, crawlen (“to crawl”). Alternatively, from scrall, a contraction of scrabble.
More words from Middle English
Full word history & related roots →scrawl · verb
- Middle Englishscraulen“to crawl”
- Englishscrawl
From Middle English scraulen (“to crawl”), itself an alteration of crawlen (“to crawl”). More at crawl.
More words from Middle English
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian драсканица, надрасквам
- драсканица (draskanica)irregular handwriting
- надрасквам (nadraskvam)to write hastily or illegibly
Chinese Mandarin 塗鴉 /涂鸦, 塗鴨 /涂鸭)
- 塗鴉 /涂鸦 (túyā)irregular handwriting
- 塗鴨 /涂鸭) (túyā)irregular handwriting
Czech čmáranice, škrábanice
- čmáraniceirregular handwriting
- škrábaniceirregular handwriting
- klikyhákyirregular handwriting
- škrabopisirregular handwriting
- načmáratto write hastily or illegibly
- naškrábatto write hastily or illegibly
- škrábatto write in an irregular or illegible manner
- drápatto write in an irregular or illegible manner
Dutch gekrabbel, krabbel
- gekrabbelirregular handwriting
- krabbelhastily or carelessly written note
Esperanto skribaĉo, skribaĉo
- skribaĉoirregular handwriting
- skribaĉohastily or carelessly written note
- skribaĉito write hastily or illegibly
- skribaĉito write in an irregular or illegible manner
Finnish harakanvarpaat, harakanvarpaat
- harakanvarpaatirregular handwriting
- harakanvarpaathastily or carelessly written note
- raapustushastily or carelessly written note
- riipustushastily or carelessly written note
- raapustaato write hastily or illegibly
- riipustaato write hastily or illegibly
- raapustaato write in an irregular or illegible manner
- riipustaato write in an irregular or illegible manner
French griffonnage, gribouillage
- griffonnageirregular handwriting
- gribouillageirregular handwriting
- griffonnerto write in an irregular or illegible manner
German Gekritzel, kritzeln
- Gekritzelirregular handwriting
- kritzelnto write hastily or illegibly
- krakelnto write hastily or illegibly
- dahin schmierento write hastily or illegibly
- kritzelnto write in an irregular or illegible manner
Hungarian macskakaparás, krikszkraksz
- macskakaparásirregular handwriting
- krikszkrakszirregular handwriting
- ákombákomirregular handwriting
- firkahastily or carelessly written note
- irkafirkahastily or carelessly written note
Icelandic krot, klór
- krotirregular handwriting
- klórirregular handwriting
- pírumpárirregular handwriting
- krotato write hastily or illegibly
- krassato write hastily or illegibly
- hripato write hastily or illegibly
- párato write hastily or illegibly
- skrifa flausturslegato write hastily or illegibly
Italian scarabocchio, girigogolo
- scarabocchioirregular handwriting
- girigogoloirregular handwriting
- sgorbioirregular handwriting
- svolazzoirregular handwriting
- scarabocchiohastily or carelessly written note
- scarabocchiareto write hastily or illegibly
- scarabocchiareto write in an irregular or illegible manner
Japanese 落書き
- 落書き (rakugaki)irregular handwriting
Polish bazgroły, bohomaz
- bazgrołyirregular handwriting
- bohomazirregular handwriting
- bazgraninairregular handwriting
- gryzmołyirregular handwriting
- gryzmolićto write hastily or illegibly
- nagryzmolićto write hastily or illegibly
- bazgraćto write hastily or illegibly
- nabazgraćto write hastily or illegibly
- bazgraćto write in an irregular or illegible manner
- gryzmolićto write in an irregular or illegible manner
- skrobaćto write in an irregular or illegible manner
- nagryzmolićto write in an irregular or illegible manner
Portuguese garrancho, rabisco
- garranchoirregular handwriting
- rabiscoirregular handwriting
- garranchohastily or carelessly written note
- rabiscarto write hastily or illegibly
- rabiscarto write in an irregular or illegible manner
Russian кара́кули, крокозя́бры
- кара́кули (karákuli)irregular handwriting
- крокозя́бры (krokozjábry)irregular handwriting
- цара́пать (carápatʹ)to write hastily or illegibly
- шкря́бать (škrjábatʹ)to write hastily or illegibly
- цара́пать (carápatʹ)to write in an irregular or illegible manner
- шкря́бать (škrjábatʹ)to write in an irregular or illegible manner
Spanish garrapateo, garrapatear
- garrapateoirregular handwriting
- garrapatearto write hastily or illegibly
- garrapatearto write in an irregular or illegible manner
Ukrainian карлючки, нерозбірливий почерк
- карлючки (karljučky)irregular handwriting
- нерозбірливий почерк (nerozbirlyvyj počerk)irregular handwriting
- шкрябати (škrjabaty)to write hastily or illegibly
- базграти (bazhraty)to write hastily or illegibly
- шкрябати (škrjabaty)to write in an irregular or illegible manner
- базграти (bazhraty)to write in an irregular or illegible manner
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with scrawl
Cite this entry
scrawl. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scrawl
“scrawl.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scrawl. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “scrawl,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/scrawl.
Source: scrawl on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.