scavenge

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scav·enge / ˈskavənj/ • v. [tr.] search for and collect (anything usable) from discarded waste: people sell junk scavenged from the garbage [intr.] the city dump where the squatters scavenge to survive. ∎  (of an animal) search for (carrion) as food. ∎  search for discarded items or food in (a place): the mink is still commonly seen scavenging the beaches of California. ∎  remove (combustion products) from the cylinder of an internal combustion engine on the return stroke of the piston. ∎  Chem. combine with and remove (molecules, radicals, etc.) from a particular medium.

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