Combination of "paper towel" and "scrape," describing the act of using a paper towel to blow your nose. The paper towel is so rough that feels like you are "scraping" your nose. This emergency measure should only be enacted when you do not have access to a tissue or toilet paper. It often helps to wet the paper towel first in order to soften the sharp edges. All in all, it is generally thought better to sacrifice a few nose hairs in order to take care of whatever business you have going on up in your nose.