Definition of "scavenger" in English

noun

1. Someone who scavenges, especially one who searches through rubbish for food or useful things.

   • garbage scavenger
   • A scavenger picked through the rubbish heap.

2. An animal that feeds on decaying matter such as carrion.

   • Vultures are natural scavengers.

3. (UK, Ireland, obsolete) A street sweeper.

4. (UK, Ireland, historical) A child employed to pick up loose cotton from the floor in a cotton mill.

5. (chemistry) A substance used to remove impurities from the air or from a solution.

verb

1. (archaic) To scavenge.

2. (archaic) To clean the rubbish from a street, etc.