noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   The act of scarifying: raking the ground harshly to remove weeds, etc. countable, uncountable
2. 2
   A medieval form of penance in which the skin was damaged with a knife or hot iron. countable, uncountable
3. 3
   The scratching, etching, burning / branding, or superficially cutting designs, pictures, or words into the skin as a permanent body modification. countable, uncountable
4. 4
   A route of administration for some vaccinations and tests: rather than hypodermic injection, the site is inoculated intradermally not with any injection but rather only with small, shallow pricks or scratches; the needle is not hollow. countable, uncountable

Synonyms

All synonyms

birthmarkblazeblemishblotchbrandcheck

Etymology

From Old French scarificacion, from Late Latin scarificatio.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.