Scavenger

['skævɪn(d)ʒə] or ['skævɪndʒɚ]

Definition

(noun.) any animal that feeds on refuse and other decaying organic matter.

(noun.) a chemical agent that is added to a chemical mixture to counteract the effects of impurities.

Typist: Trevor--From WordNet

Definition

(v.) A person whose employment is to clean the streets of a city, by scraping or sweeping, and carrying off the filth. The name is also applied to any animal which devours refuse, carrion, or anything injurious to health.

Edited by Adela

Definition

n. one who cleans the streets: an animal which feeds on carrion: a child employed to pick up loose cotton from the floor in a cotton-mill.—ns. Scav′agery street-cleansing; Scav′aging.—v.t. Scav′enge to cleanse.—ns. Scav′enger-bee′tle a beetle which acts as a scavenger; Scav′enger-crab any crab which feeds on decaying animal matter; Scav′engering; Scav′engerism; Scav′engery.—Scavenger's daughter an instrument of torture by pressure with an iron hoop invented by Sir W. Skevington Lieutenant of the Tower under Henry VIII.

Checker: Lowell