rake

noun, verb

1 [C] a garden tool with a long handle and a row of metal points at the end, used for gathering fallen leaves and making soil smooth 2 [C] (old-fashioned) a man, especially a rich and fashionable one, who is thought to have low moral standards, for example because he drinks or gambles a lot or has sex with a lot of women 3 [sing.] (technical) the amount by which sth, especially the stage in a theatre, slopes

1 to pull a rake over a surface in order to make it level or to remove sth: [VN] The leaves had been raked into a pile. * (figurative) She raked a comb through her hair. * [VN-ADJ] First rake the soil smooth. [also V] 2 [VN] to point a camera, light, gun, etc. at sb/sth and move it slowly from one side to the other: They raked the streets with machine-gun fire. * Searchlights raked the grounds. 3 [V+adv./prep.] to search a place carefully for sth: She raked around in her bag for her keys. 4 [VN, V] to scratch the surface of sth with a sharp object, especially your nails IDIOMS rake sb over the coals (AmE) = haul sb over the coals at HAUL PHRASALVERBS rake in sth (informal) to earn a lot of money, especially when it is done easily: The movie raked in more than $300 million. * She's been raking it in since she started her new job. rake over sth (informal, disapproving) to examine sth that happened in the past in great detail and keep talking about it, when it should be forgotten: She had no desire to rake over the past. rake sth<->up (informal, disapproving) to mention sth unpleasant that happened in the past and that other people would like to forget: Raking up the past will only make things worse.