1. To search for and to collect something that is usable from things that have been discarded or thrown away: Some people try to sell junk that they have scavenged from trash piles.

Sometimes city dumps are places where poor people scavenge for pieces of old furniture, etc. in order to survive.

2. Some animals search for carrion as food or for discarded food: Jim saw some cats in town that aren't fed by anyone; so, they live in the streets and parks where they scavenge for food.

During his trip to Africa, Mike often saw vultures, hyenas, jackals, and other animals which were scavenging for food from the bodies of animals that the lions had left after they had finished eating what they had killed.