(skāl) noun
1. One of the thin, flat, horny, membranous or bony outgrowths of the skin of various vertebrates, as most fishes, usually overlapping and forming a nearly complete investment.
2. A scab.
3. A scale insect.
4. Bot. A rudimentary or metamorphosed leaf, as of a pine cone.
5. Metall. The coating of oxide that forms on heated iron, etc.: also, an incrustation, as on the inside of boilers.
6. Any hard, thin, scalelike formation, as a flake, husk, shell, pod, or exfoliation.
—v. scaled, scal·ing v.t.
1. To strip or clear of scale or scales.
2. To form scales on; cover with scales.
3. To take off in layers or scales; pare off.
4. To throw (a thin, flat object) so that its edge cuts the air or so that it skips along the surface of water.
—v.i.
5. To come off in layers or scales; peel.
6. To shed scales.
7. To become incrusted with scales. [<OF escale a husk <Gmc.; infl. in meaning by OF escaille a fish's scale, an oyster's shell <Med. L scalia <Gmc.]
—scal′er noun

(skāl) noun
1. A piece of metal, wood, or glass bearing accurately spaced lines or graduations for use in measurement, or the series of marks so used.
2. Any system of designating units of measurement or in which a fixed proportion is used in determining quantities: a scale of 1 inch to the mile.
3. Math. A system of notation in which the successive places determine the value of figures, as the decimal system.
4. Any progressive or graded series; a graduation: the social scale.
5. Music All the tones or notes of a key in regular ascending or descending order, in an octave or more.
6. Phot. The range of light values which may be reproduced by a photographic paper.
7. An escalade.
8. A succession of steps; ladder; stairs: the original meaning.
—major scale Music A scale having semitones between the 3–4 and 7–8 notes.
—minor scale Music A scale having semitones between 2–3, 5–6, 7–8 notes (the harmonic form); or between 2–3, 7–8 ascending, 6–5, 3–2 descending (the melodic form).
—v. scaled, scal·ing v.t.
1. To climb to the top of; go up by or as by means of a ladder.
2. To make according to a scale.
3. To regulate or adjust according to a scale or ratio: with up, down, etc.
4. To measure (logs) or estimate the amount of lumber in (standing timber).
—v.i.
5. To climb; ascend.
6. To rise, as in steps or stages: Mountains scaling to the skies. [<Ital. scala a ladder <L <scandere climb]
—scal′a·ble adjective
—scal′er noun
SCALE
a. Ascending.
b. Descending.

(skāl) noun
1. The bowl, scoop, or platform of a weighing instrument or balance.
2. The balance itself; hence, figuratively, the scale or scales of Justice.
3. Usually plural Any form of weighing machine.
—to turn the scales To determine; decide.
—v. scaled, scal·ing v.t.
1. To weigh in scales.
2. To amount to in weight.
—v.i.
3. To be weighed in scales. [<ON skāl a bowl, in plural a weighing balance. Akin to SHALE, SHELL.]