Scoured

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Removed dirt or impurities from a surface by rubbing hard or washing ; looked through carefully to find something
2. Wiped or scrubbed an area vigorously until clean ; examined a place or collection in detail to locate items or information
3. Cleaned something by abrasive action or rinsing thoroughly ; conducted an intensive search or investigation to uncover desired objects or data

Etymology: Scoured is the past tense of "scour," and the verb has two separate histories that happen to have converged. The sense of cleaning by rubbing comes from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German, where words for cleaning and polishing were related, and the source of these is probably Old French "escurer," meaning to clean off. That word traces back to Medieval Latin, built from "ex-" meaning thoroughly and "cura," meaning care, so scouring began as thorough caretaking. The sense of hunting through a place, which is the one this entry means, belongs to a different verb. Middle English had a "scouren" meaning to move quickly or travel about looking for enemies, drawn from Old Norse words for rushing in and for a shower of missiles. Over time the two verbs merged in English, and the idea of rushing about raided a place began to blend with the idea of scrubbing it clean until nothing was left.

Synonyms: searched, rummaged, searched thoroughly, swept, examined

Antonyms: ignored, overlooked, neglected