British slang for obtaining goods and services without having to pay for them. The word can be used in
two rather different ways:
1 If it is for personal advantage then the word has certain negative implications, that the person doing the
scrounging is not wholly trustworthy;
2 If it is to further a project at
work or to obtain goods, materials or money for a
charity then there can be a certain
amount of admiration.
1 “I see
Jan’s mumping drinks again.”
“What a scrounging old fart she is.”
2 “How did you get the job finished so quickly?
“
Johnny went out scrounging and brought back some brand new 2 x 1 someone had
dumped in a skip.”