scrapheap
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: 1. A pile of discarded metal or waste material: A heap or mound where unwanted items, especially scrap metal, are thrown away. 2. A state of being discarded or rejected as worthless: A metaphorical place for things or people that are no longer wanted or considered useful.
Usage
The word "scrapheap" is used to describe both a physical location for waste and a figurative concept of obsolescence or rejection. It often carries a negative connotation of being thrown away.
Examples
- Literal (Physical Pile):
- The old car engines were rusting on the scrapheap.
- He made a sculpture from pieces he found on the scrapheap.
- Figurative (State of Rejection):
- After the new model was released, the old software was consigned to the scrapheap.
- Many veteran players fear being sent to the scrapheap by their clubs.
Advanced Usage
- "to be on the scrapheap": To be in a state of having been discarded or abandoned.
- The outdated machinery is now on the scrapheap of history.
- "to consign/throw something to the scrapheap": To discard or reject something as useless.
- The company threw the old policy to the scrapheap.
Variants and Related Words
- Scrap (noun): A small piece or amount of something, especially one that is left over or discarded.
- He wrote the number on a scrap of paper.
- Scrap (verb): To discard or get rid of something as no longer useful.
- They decided to scrap the entire project.
Synonyms
- Junkyard: A place where scrap is collected and stored.
- Scrapyard: A yard where scrap is collected and often processed.
- Dump: A site for depositing waste.
- Reject pile: A collection of discarded items.
Related Idioms and Phrases
- "Scrapheap of history": A metaphorical place where outdated ideas, systems, or people are relegated and forgotten.
- The dictator's regime ended up on the scrapheap of history.
Noun
- pile of discarded metal
- an accumulation of refuse and discarded matter