▪ I. scrimmage, scrummage, n.
(ˈskrɪmɪdʒ, ˈskrʌmɪdʒ)
Forms: α. 5 scrymmage, 6 scrymage, 7 scrimage, 7, 9 skrimmage, 8 skrimage, 8–9 scrimmage; β. 9 skrummage, scrummage.
[Altered form of scrimish n., the ending being associated with -age suffix. Cf. the parallel skirmage, obs. var. of skirmish n.
This is now used primarily as a sporting term. The older i-form is common in all senses, and has become predominant in American Football, whilst the u-form is preferred in Rugby Football.]
† 1. = skirmish n. Also, a fencing bout. Obs.
| c 1470 Henry Wallace iii. 359 Ane Inglisman, on the gait, saw he play At the scrymmagis a bukler on his hand. Ibid. ix. 458 Then Longaweill, that ay was full sawage, With Wallace past, as ane to that scrymmage. 1549 MSS. Dk. Rutland (Hist. MSS. Comm.) IV. 356 To ij Duchemen that were hurt in the scrymage at Dunbar, xs. 1567 Drant Horace, Ep. i. xviii. F v, The Oste deuydes their bargies, and the water scrymage then..in foishe guyse is playde by youthely men. 1643 Par. Reg. St. Mary's Beverley 30 June, O'r great scrimage in Beverley & god gave us the victory. |
† 2. An outcry, alarm; = scrimish n. 2. Obs.
| 1632 Acts Durham High Comm. Crt. (Surtees) 30 Shee heard her mistris..make a great skrimmage or outcry. |
3. a. colloq. A noisy contention or tussle; also, a confused struggle between persons, often with exchange of blows; a free-fight scuffle. Also fig. (freq. after sense 4).
| α 1780 Johnson Lett. 6 June, Mrs. Vesey protests that I do not love them since that skrimage. 1826 J. F. Cooper Mohicans xx, That we shall have what you may call a brisk push of it, is probable; and it may happen, a brush, a skrimmage. 1844 Catholic Weekly Instr. 127 The wild exultant cry so frequently heard in an Irish scrimmidge. 1884 Manch. Exam. 15 Nov. 5/2 There was generally a chance of a scrimmage with the police when these mounted processions took their outing. 1897 M. Kingsley W. Africa 138 Fearful scrimmage heard going on all the time on the deck below. 1900 H. A. Jones Mrs. Dane's Defence i. 17 Have you made a mess of your life?.. I wonder how many poor women have been sacrificed in the—scrimmage? 1930 E. M. Brent-Dyer Chalet Girls in Camp vi. 93 After something like a scrimmage they got the thing right. 1957 L. Durrell Justine iii. 185 The whole portentous scrimmage of sex. 1979 This England Winter 28/2 The doors of St. Paul's revolve like Marks and Spencer's onto the scrimmage round its book⁓stalls. |
| β 1823 E. Moor Suffolk Words 356 Skrummage, a battle, a fray; probably skirmish. 1830 Marryat King's Own xxvi, In two scrummages only two men were killed out of hundreds. 1833 ― P. Simple xiii, ‘Was there a fight?’ ‘Not much of a fight—only a bit of a skrummage—three crowner's inquests, no more.’ 1905 Daily Chron. 15 July 6/3 [The] entrance arrangements, which necessitated a scrummage lasting from five to fifteen minutes to those who were ticket-holders. 1959 A. Sillitoe Loneliness of Long-Distance Runner 23 Mam had forgotten to buy me one in the scrummage of shopping. |
b. dial. A confused, noisy proceeding. (Cf. Eng. Dial. Dict. and scrimmage v. 2.)
| 1855 Kingsley Westw. Ho! xxx, If everybody's caranting about to once, each after his own man, nobody'll find nothing in such a scrimmage as that. |
4. a. Rugby Football. Originally, a confused struggle in which the players on either side endeavor to force their opponents and the ball towards the opposite goal; now, an ordered formation in which the two sets of forwards pack themselves together with their heads down and endeavour by pushing to work their opponents off the ball and break away with it or heel it out. Phr. to carry the scrimmage, to gain ground in a scrimmage. to hold the scrimmage, to prevent one's opponents from gaining ground.
| α 1864 Field 10 Dec. 403/2 After several severe scrimmages in the School goal, a run-in was obtained. 1887 Shearman Athletics & Football 311 The first and essential requisite to a forward team is that it should be able to ‘hold’, if not always to ‘carry the scrimmage’. |
| β 1857 Hughes Tom Brown i. v, Then the two sides close and you can see nothing for minutes but a swaying crowd of boys, at one point violently agitated. That is where the ball is... This is what we call a scrummage, gentlemen. 1867 Routledge's Handbk. Football 47 A Scrummage commences—i.e. the holder puts the ball down on the ground, and all who have closed round on their respective sides begin kicking at the ball. 1889 H. Vassall Rugby Football 32 A team must contain enough honest workers to be able to hold the scrummage. 1892 Outdoor Games 548 A maul, or tight scrummage. Ibid. 549 A loose scrummage may be described as half way between a maul and a dribble. |
b. A tussle for the ball among players (in various games).
| 1883 F. M. Crawford Mr. Isaacs viii, [Polo] Twice the ball was sent over the line..by long sweeping blows from Isaacs, who ever hovered on the edge of the scrimmage. 1889 Field 12 Jan. 61/3 [Hockey] Lucas putting the ball through out of a scrummage in front of goal off the goal-keeper. Ibid. 89/1, [Association] A scrimmage in the mouth of the goal appeared likely to result in a further point. |
c. Amer. Football. (a) A sequence of play which is started when two lines of opposing players are ranked parallel to the goal-lines, and a centre holds the ball between the teams before handing or passing it to one of his backs († see also quot. 1883); line of scrimmage, scrimmage line: the (imaginary) line separating two teams at the beginning of such a play.
| 1880 Harvard Advocate 8 Oct. 18/2 With such a number of rushers to enter in the scrimmages..it was found almost impossible for either side to make a goal or a touch-down. 1883 Foot-Ball Rules (Amer. Intercollegiate Assoc.) 6 A scrimmage takes place when the holder of the ball puts it down on the ground and puts it in play by kicking it or snapping it back. 1896 Camp & Deland Football xiv. 412 The man who puts the ball in play in a scrimmage, and the opponent opposite him cannot pick up the ball until it has touched some third man. 1899 W. Camp in Football (Badm. Libr.) 287 (American Football) Someone upon his side..must place the ball on the ground at that spot for a ‘scrimmage’, as it is termed. 1909 Crimson-White (Univ. of Alabama) 18 Nov. 4/2 It finds half a dozen Alabama players bunched at the end of the scrimmage line. 1910 W. Camp Bk. Foot-Ball ii. 26 The American scrimmage, while coming directly from the English play, bears now no similarity to it. Instead of an indiscriminate kicking struggle we have the snap-back and quarter-back play. The snap-back snaps the ball back with his hands; the quarter seizes it and passes it to any man for whom the ball is destined in the plan of play or he may himself run with it. 1929 G. Bickley Handbk. Athletics 105 The offensive team must have seven men on the line of scrimmage or be penalized. 1941 Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Va.) 14 Jan. 11 A player can elect to run back a punt from scrimmage if the ball is caught in the end zone. 1960 P. W. Bryant Building Championship Football Team 49 The defensive ends line up in a four-point stance as close to the line of scrimmage as they can get. 1972 J. Mosedale Football i. 6 On an early play from scrimmage, he spilled Thorpe for a loss. 1981 NCAA Football Rules & Interpretations fr–30 The neutral zone is the space between the two lines of scrimmage and is established when the ball is ready for play. |
(b) A session in which an offensive squad practises plays against a defensive squad.
| 1916 Mobile (Alabama) Register 6 Oct. 12/3 Long practices with a hard scrimmage each evening..was the schedule all week. 1929 G. Bickley Handbk. Athletics 95 ‘Block somebody!’ should be heard on the football field every time a play is run in practice scrimmage. 1954 N. Stone Coach Tommy of Crimson Tide 17 After two weeks of work on fundamentals and a few basic plays, the first scrimmage was held. 1968 Birmingham (Alabama) News 7 Sept. 14/1 Jordan planned a Saturday afternoon scrimmage with freshmen running the SMU offense and defense. |
▪ II. ˈscrimmage, ˈscrummage, v.
[f. the n.]
1. intr. ‘To skirmish, quarrel; to scramble; to argue’ (Eng. Dial. Dict.).
| a 1825 Forby Voc. E. Anglia, Scrimmage, Scrummage v., to skirmish, &c. |
2. To bustle about.
| 1833 T. Hook Love & Pride vi, You keep here, sir, while I go skrimmiging about the premises. 1883 E. Pennell-Elmhirst Cream Leicestersh. 255 Without a scent, hounds scrimmaged hither and thither with the cubs in the low dense gorse. 1887 Hare Story Life (1900) VI. 59 She scrimmaged at the fire, and raked out all she possibly could. |
3. a. Rugby Football. To put (the ball) in a scrummage as a means of re-starting the game when and where it has been temporarily stopped, as for some breach of the rules; also, to propel or take along in a scrimmage.
| 1881 Sportsman's Year-bk. 165 The ball is scrummaged where the act of off-side was committed. 1887 Field 19 Nov. 790/1 The ball had been dead a short way outside, and when scrummaged off was removed out of danger. 1892 Outdoor Games 540 If it [sc. the ball] is scrummaged over [the goal-line], the chances are ten to one that the defending side avert disaster by means of a touch-down. |
b. Amer. Football. To engage in a scrimmage; spec. to practise plays with squads of offensive and defensive players (see sense 4 c (b) of the n.).
| 1910 Crimson-White (Univ. of Alabama) 6 Oct. 1/3 Then the two teams lined up and scrimmaged for quite a time. 1934 Birmingham (Alabama) Age-Herald 15 Sept. 12/7 For the third consecutive practice day, the Vanderbilt Commodores scrimmaged Monday. 1965 Tuscaloosa (Alabama) News 9 Sept. 13/6 The Bulldogs scrimmaged Wednesday. |