26984 words

scourge

4 definitions • 5 examples
1
something or someone that causes great suffering or a lot of trouble:

Examples:

the scourge of war/poverty/drugs
Pop-up ads have been described as the scourge of the Internet.
2
to cause great suffering or a lot of trouble:

Examples:

The country has been scourged by (= has suffered very much because of) famine in recent years.
3
to beat someone with a whip (= a piece of leather or rope fastened to a stick) as a punishment:

Examples:

When Jesus was scourged by the Roman soldiers he bled like a man.
4
someone or something that causes harm, evil, or destruction:

Examples:

Smallpox, that scourge of previous generations, now is effectively extinct.

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