scratches

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of scratch.

   Faint scratches ran across the surface of the old vinyl record.

   The detective noticed several fresh scratches around the lock.

   Note

   Because scratch ends in -ch, its plural takes -es rather than a bare -s. The plural also reaches well beyond marks on a surface. In pool, scratches are fouls, such as sinking the cue ball or sending it off the table. In the long jump, discus or shot put, they are technical errors at the starting mark. The same spelling also serves the verb form.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of scratch.

   The old branch scratches against the window every time the wind picks up.

   He scratches a quick note onto the back of an envelope before leaving.

   Note

   A verb that works with or without an object: a cat scratches the door, while a branch scratches against the glass. Add out and marking becomes deleting, as when an editor scratches out a line. It can also name the cause of an itch rather than the response, as in rough wool that scratches the skin. Its spelling is shared with the plural noun.

3. 3
   noununcountableplural

   An inflammation of the skin on a horse's pastern, the area just above the hoof, producing scabs, crusts, and soreness.

   The trainer treated scratches by keeping the affected pasterns clean and dry.

   Horses turned out in soggy paddocks frequently develop scratches over the winter.

   Note

   A name that is plural in form and has no singular: a horse has scratches, never a scratch. It comes from the behavior the disease provokes, since the irritated skin sets the animal scratching. Pastern dermatitis is the clinical term for the same condition. Keep it apart from the everyday plural meaning marks on a surface.

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