scaly

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English scali, skaly, equivalent to scale +‎ -y.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ˈskeɪli/
  • Audio (Southern England)(file)
  • Rhymes: -eɪli

Adjective[edit]

scaly (comparative scalier, superlative scaliest)

  1. Covered or abounding with scales.
    Synonyms: squamulose; see also Thesaurus:scaly
    Antonyms: scaleless, esquamulose
    a scaly fish  a scaly stem
  2. Composed of scales lying over each other.
    a scaly bulb
  3. Resembling scales, laminae, or layers.
  4. (dated, vulgar or South Africa) low, mean.
    a scaly fellow
    • 1923, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter II, in Leave It to Psmith:
      This done, he removed the hat; and having touched his forehead lightly with a silk handkerchief, for the afternoon sun was warm, gazed about him with a grave distaste. “A scaly neighbourhood!” he murmured. The young man’s judgment was one at which few people with an eye for beauty would have cavilled.

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Noun[edit]

A drawing of a scaly yellowfish

scaly (plural scalies)

  1. (South Africa) The scaly yellowfish (Labeobarbus natalensis).

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