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scouring

3.9

Dirt and small bits removed when you scrub something

noun
/ˈskaʊərɪŋ/

: residuos

Examples

And the 'wolves' devour them, finding justification in the fact that they are only the 'scourings of humanity.'

Blog text (33)
But this is not true; for 'scourings' who are converted can become key figures on the esoteric chessboard.

Blog text (33)
But the dust makes a wonderful scouring powder; it gets out every stain you can think of and a few you can't, so I don't feel too bad about getting so little use out of them.

Fiction book (1999)
The old kitchen had layers of grease and dirt, and the scouring helped restore its original shine.
After the renovation, they had piles of scouring that needed to be swept away before the new furniture arrived.
Using a scouring powder made the stained pot look like new again after just a few minutes of scrubbing.

Synonyms

scraping

vsscouring

9 4.4

Small pieces removed from a surface by rubbing

is broader, referring to general dirt removed during washing or scrubbing

offscouring

vsscouring

Archaic

9.9

Dirt and waste removed when you clean something

is the common general term for that removed waste

sweeping

vsscouring

2.7

Small pieces of dirt and dust left after cleaning a floor

is about material lifted off during washing or scrubbing, not broom collection

Compounds

scouring pad

1 3.1

A small rough scrubber used to clean pots and pans to remove stuck food

scouring rush

Specialized

9.9

A plant with rough, jointed stems that people once used to clean pots

variegated scouring rush

9.9

A plant with hollow striped stems used to scrub pots

Surface Forms

scouring singular

scourings plural

Morphology

scouring = scour (semi-transparent) = scour + ing

This sense is a metonymic/result noun derived from the action (the material removed), so the relation to the verb is present but not a direct action meaning.

Etymology

Scouring comes from the same root scour meaning 'to wash away', so it also came to mean the dirt or bits that are washed off. Think of the waste you sweep or throw away after heavy cleaning — that is the scouring.