What does "scroll" mean?
A roll of paper or parchment; a writing formed into a roll.
Scroll
/skɹoʊl/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A roll of paper or parchment; a writing formed into a roll.
- Grammar: scroll is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: roll, a string, account, agenda.
- Useful contrasts: maya codices, book, books.
- Usage evidence: Would you look at that! After a long and exhausting quest I finally managed to find the mythical Scroll of Swordsmanship.
How to use "scroll"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "scroll" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "scroll" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "scroll" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "scroll" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "scroll" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "roll" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "scroll", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A roll of paper or parchment; a writing formed into a roll.
- 2 a document that can be rolled up (as for storage) wordnet
- 3 An ornament formed of undulations giving off spirals or sprays, usually suggestive of plant form. Roman architectural ornament is largely of some scroll pattern.
- 4 a round shape formed by a series of concentric circles (as formed by leaves or flower petals) wordnet
- 5 Spirals or sprays in the shape of an actual plant.
"I lose myself in a flawed henna plant jutting toward the scroll. Its rose-pink eyes burst off the stems."
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 A mark or flourish added to a person's signature, intended to represent a seal, and in some States allowed as a substitute for a seal. [U.S.] Alexander Mansfield Burrill.
- 7 The carved end of a violin, viola, cello or other stringed instrument, most commonly scroll-shaped but occasionally in the form of a human or animal head.
- 8 A skew surface.
- 9 A kind of sweet roll baked in a somewhat spiral shape.
"I ordered a glass of lemonade and a coffee scroll."
- 10 The incremental movement of graphics on a screen, removing one portion to show the next.
"[…] the computer sends orders, via electrical impulses, to recompose the liquid crystal structure inside the cells quickly which results in the familiar smooth scroll of the pointer on your screen."
- 11 A spiral waterway placed round a turbine to regulate the flow.
- 12 A turbinate bone.
- 13 A rough draft of anything. obsolete
- 14 The act of scrolling
"I gave the terms and conditions a quick scroll before signing up to the website."
Verb
- 1 To change one's view of data on a computer's display by moving in gradual increments, typically using an input device or touch screen. ambitransitive
"She scrolled the offending image out of view."
- 2 move through text or graphics in order to display parts that do not fit on the screen wordnet
- 3 To move in or out of view horizontally or vertically. intransitive
"The rising credits slowly scrolled off the screen."
- 4 To flood a chat system with numerous lines of text, causing legitimate messages to scroll out of view before they can be read. Internet, dated, intransitive
"Hey, stop scrolling!"
- 5 To draft; to write in rough outline. obsolete, transitive
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Would you look at that! After a long and exhausting quest I finally managed to find the mythical Scroll of Swordsmanship."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "scroll"?
Common synonyms include: roll, a string, account, agenda, aldine, aldine book.
How do you use "scroll" in a sentence?
Would you look at that! After a long and exhausting quest I finally managed to find the mythical Scroll of Swordsmanship.
How do you pronounce "scroll"?
Pronounced /skɹoʊl/.
Etymology
From Middle English scrowle, scrolle, from earlier scrowe, scrouwe (influenced by Middle English rolle), from Old French escroe, escrowe, escrouwe (“scroll, strip of parchment”), from Frankish *skrōda (“a shred”), from Proto-Germanic *skraudō, from *skrew- (“to cut; cutting tool”), extension of *(s)ker- (“to cut”). Doublet of shred and escrow.