scavenge
Pick through refuse
Scavenge means to search through discarded material for something usable.
Animals scavenge carrion; people scavenge dumpsters, junkyards, or abandoned buildings: We scavenged parts from old computers to build a new one.
The word implies resourcefulness in finding value where others see waste.
Extended uses cover any opportunistic gathering: scavenging ideas from competitors, scavenging quotes for an essay.
Recovering damaged goods
- reclaimTake back possession
- retrieveGet something back
- recoverRegain health or possession
- repurposeAdapt for new use
rummage · scrounge · pick through · sift · junkyard · dumpster · wreckage · debris
Putrefying animal remains
- carcassSlaughtered animal's body
- vultureCarrion-eating raptor
- hyenaCackling African carnivore
- jackalWild African dog
crow · maggot · decomposition · remains · corpse · roadkill · predator · condor
Continue to exist
- subsistMaintain minimal existence
- endureSuffer through without yielding
- resourcefulnessAbility to solve problems creatively
- ingenuityClever, original thinking
self-sufficiency · makeshift · improvise · ration · scarcity · desperation · necessity · wasteland
salvage
Recovering damaged goods
repurpose · rummage · scrounge · pick through · sift · junkyard · dumpster · wreckage · debris · scraps
carrion
Putrefying animal remains
jackal · crow · maggot · decomposition · remains · corpse · roadkill · predator · condor · buzzard
forage
Seek food actively
berries · nuts · roots · edible · fungi · mushrooms · insects · grubs · herbs · wildcrafting
survive
Continue to exist
- subsistMaintain minimal existence
- endureSuffer through without yielding
- resourcefulnessAbility to solve problems creatively
ingenuity · self-sufficiency · makeshift · improvise · ration · scarcity · desperation · necessity · wasteland · post-apocalyptic
- salvagesalvage, salvage operations, salvage operation, salvor, marine salvage
- frugalityfrugality, thrift, frugal, penny-pinching, economize
- gathering verbsgather, collect, accumulate, amass, compile
- searchsearch, web search, seek, text search, hunt
- improviseimprovise, make do, wing it, ad-lib, jury-rig
- scavenger huntGame of locating items
- scavenger bird
- oxygen scavengerSubstance removing reactive gas