Definitions

scrappy

[skrap-ee] / ˈskræp i /

ADJECTIVE

belligerent

Synonyms

STRONGEST

aggressive combative fierce ornery

WEAK

antagonistic ardent at loggerheads battling bellicose cantankerous contentious fighting flip have a bone to pick have chip on shoulder have it in for hostile hot hot-tempered mean militant on the outs pugnacious quarrelsome truculent warlike

Antonyms

STRONGEST

calm peaceful

ADJECTIVE

argumentative

Synonyms

STRONGEST

combative

WEAK

belligerent contentious contrary controversial disputatious eristic factious fire-eating having a chip on one's shoulder litigious opinionated polemic polemical pugnacious quarrelsome salty spiky touchy

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

And he hadn’t allowed more than one baserunner in any inning, squashing the scrappy Rays’ ability to manufacture a run.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 17, 2026

A spoof film, by nature, is always going to be a bit scrappy.

From Salon • Jun. 11, 2026

Fast facts: Dominic Sessa of “The Holdovers” plays a young, obnoxious and scrappy Anthony Bourdain, the chef-turned-TV-star who died in 2018, in this biopic.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 6, 2026

By 1999, King had been awarded an MBE for services to music as the Mobos grew from scrappy underdog to music industry fixture, holding its own against the long-established Brit Awards.

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026

I’d been pretty scrappy as a kid, and our family had always fought for one another, but back then we’d had no choice.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls

scrappy

Example Sentences

Related Words