Idioms

start from scratch

This page is about the idiom start from scratch

Meaning

If you start from scratch, you begin something from the very beginning without using anything else as a starting point.

For example

  • Our website is terrible, so we should get rid of it altogether and start again from scratch.

  • I was being interviewed for a radio show, but the guy forgot to turn on the recorder. He realised after about ten minutes, so we had to start again from scratch.

Quick Quiz

Julio had to start his book again from scratch because

a. he lost it all in a house fire

b. he didn't like the last part

c. his editor said it needed work
a) he lost it all in a house fire b) he didn't like the last part c) his editor said it needed work

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Common English Idioms

Contributor: Matt Errey