Hypertext Webster Gateway: "scarify"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Scarify \Scar"i*fy\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Scarified}; p. pr. &
vb. n. {Scarifying}.] [F. scarifier, L. scarificare,
scarifare, fr. Gr. ? to scratch up, fr. ? a pointed
instrument.]
1. To scratch or cut the skin of; esp. (Med.), to make small
incisions in, by means of a lancet or scarificator, so as
to draw blood from the smaller vessels without opening a
large vein.
2. (Agric.) To stir the surface soil of, as a field.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
scarify
v 1: puncture the skin, as, for example, in some African
cultures; for ritual purposes
2: scar (the body) in certain cultures; "Some African tribes
scarify their faces"
3: scratch the surface of; "scarify seeds"
4: break up, of soil
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