scruff

7 5.9

Loose skin at the back of an animal's neck used to carry young animals

noun
/skrʌf/

: nuca

So I still bite the scruff of my partner's neck.
scruff of the neck
grabbed by the scruff

It was like an Angel grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and slammed him right in front of me.

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Examples

Then she picked Dinah up—as the dog lady on television had instructed—by the scruff of the neck.

Fiction book (2001)
The captain grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and sat him down in the front seat.

Fiction book (2001)
Taking the case by the scruff of the neck, by God.

Blog text (33)
Eventually, she dropped it by the scruff of its neck into her work basket and shut the cover.

Fiction book (2002)
I bury my face in the fur of Wen Pao's scruff.

Fiction book (1995)
The veterinarian gently lifted the puppy by the scruff of its neck to examine it.
The mother cat carried her kitten by the scruff of its neck to protect it.
He held the dog firmly by the scruff of its neck to prevent it from escaping.

Synonyms

nape

vsscruff

9 4.2

The back part of the neck behind the head

is used for the loose, often hanging skin at the back of animal necks

dewlap

vsscruff

1 9.9

A fold of loose skin that hangs below the chin

is the back neck area specifically including loose skin on animals

nucha

vsscruff

Specialized

9.9

The back part of the neck at its base

is more informal and refers to loose skin at the back of animals

Surface Forms

scruff singular

scruffs plural

Etymology

Scruff comes from an old word scurf meaning 'rough, dry skin', so people used it for the loose, often rough skin at the back of the neck that you can grab. That's why scruff means the back part of the neck, and it also gave us scruffy for someone untidy.