SK -abbr

  1. Saskatchewan

ska ['skä] -n

  1. popular music of Jamaican origin that combines elements of traditional Caribbean rhythms and jazz

skag ['skag] -n

(variant of scag)

  1. heroin

skald ['skȯld, 'skäld] -n, adj

  1. an ancient Scandinavian poet
  2. bard

skank ['skaŋk] -n

  1. a person and esp. a woman of low or sleazy character
  2. a rhythmic dance performed by swinging the arms while bending the knees esp. to reggae or ska
  3. the music for this dance
  4. to dance the skank
  5. to bungle (a stroke) in golf

skanky ['skaŋ-kē] -adj

  1. repugnantly filthy or squalid
  2. of low or sleazy character

skat ['skät, 'skat] -n

  1. a three-handed card game played with 32 cards in which players bid for the privilege of attempting any of several contracts
  2. a widow of two cards in skat that may be used by the winner of the bid

skate ['skāt] -n

  1. any of a family (Rajidae, esp. genus Raja) of rays with the pectoral fins greatly developed giving the fish a flat diamond shape
  2. a metal frame that can be fitted to the sole of a shoe and to which is attached a runner or a set of wheels for gliding over ice or a surface other than ice
  3. roller skate
  4. in-line skate
  5. ice skate
  6. a period of skating
  7. to glide along on skates propelled by the alternate action of the legs
  8. to slip or glide as if on skates
  9. to proceed in a superficial or blithe manner
  10. to go along or through by skating
  11. a thin awkward-looking or decrepit horse : nag
  12. fellow

skate·board ['skāt-,bȯrd] -n

  1. a short board mounted on small wheels that is used for coasting and for performing athletic stunts

skateboard [-,bȯr-dər] -vi, n

  1. to ride or perform stunts on a skateboard

skat·er ['skā-tər] -n

  1. one that skates
  2. water strider

skating -n

  1. the act, art, or sport of gliding on skates

ska·tole ['ska-,tōl, 'skā-] -n

  1. a foul-smelling compound C 9H 9N found in the intestines and feces, in civet, and in several plants or made synthetically and used in perfumes as a fixative

skean ['skān] -n

(variant of skein)

  1. a loosely coiled length of yarn or thread wound on a reel
  2. something suggesting the twists or coils of a skein : tangle
  3. a flock of wildfowl (as geese or ducks) in flight
  4. to wind into skeins
    • skein yarn

ske·dad·dle [ski-'da-dᵊl] -vi, n

  1. run away, scram
  2. to flee in a panic

skeet ['skēt] -n

  1. trapshooting in which clay pigeons are thrown in such a way as to simulate the angles of flight of birds

skee·ter ['skē-tər] -n

  1. mosquito
  2. an iceboat 16 feet (5 meters) or more in length equipped with a single sail

skeet·er ['skē-tər] -n

  1. a skeet shooter

skeg ['skeg] -n

  1. the stern of the keel of a ship near the sternpost
  2. the part connecting the keel with the bottom of the rudderpost in a single-screw ship
  3. a fin situated on the rear bottom of a surfboard that is used for steering and stability

skeigh ['skēk̲] -adj

  1. proudly spirited : skittish

skein ['skān] -n

  1. a loosely coiled length of yarn or thread wound on a reel
  2. something suggesting the twists or coils of a skein : tangle
  3. a flock of wildfowl (as geese or ducks) in flight
  4. to wind into skeins
    • skein yarn

skel·e·tal ['ske-lə-tᵊl] -adj, adv

  1. of, relating to, forming, attached to, or resembling a skeleton

skeletal muscle -n

  1. striated muscle that is usu. attached to the skeleton and is usu. under voluntary control

skel·e·ton ['ske-lə-tən] -n, adj

  1. a usu. rigid supportive or protective structure or framework of an organism
  2. the bony or more or less cartilaginous framework supporting the soft tissues and protecting the internal organs of a vertebrate
  3. something reduced to its minimum form or essential parts
  4. an emaciated person or animal
  5. something forming a structural framework
  6. the straight or branched chain or ring of atoms that forms the basic structure of an organic molecule
  7. something shameful and kept secret (as in a family) often used in the phrase skeleton in the closet
  8. a small sled that is ridden in a prone position and used esp. in competition
  9. the competition itself

skeleton -adj

  1. of, consisting of, or resembling a skeleton

skel·e·ton·ise [-,īz] -vt

(variant of skeletonize)

  1. to produce in or reduce to skeleton form
    • skeletonize a leaf

skel·e·ton·ize [-,īz] -vt

  1. to produce in or reduce to skeleton form
    • skeletonize a leaf

skel·e·ton·iz·er [-,ī-zər] -n

  1. any of various lepidopteran larvae that eat the parenchyma of leaves reducing them to a skeleton of veins

skeleton key -n

  1. a key with a large part of the bit filed away to enable it to open low quality locks as a master key

skel·ter ['skel-tər] -vi

  1. scurry

Skel·ton·ics [skel-'tä-niks] -n pl

  1. short verses of an irregular meter with two or three stresses sometimes in falling and sometimes in rising rhythm and usu. with rhymed couplets

skep ['skep] -n

  1. hive
  2. a domed hive made of twisted straw

skep·sis ['skep-səs] -n

  1. philosophic doubt as to the objective reality of phenomena
  2. a skeptical outlook or attitude

skep·tic ['skep-tik] -n

  1. an adherent or advocate of skepticism
  2. a person disposed to skepticism esp. regarding religion or religious principles

skep·ti·cal [-ti-kəl] -adj, adv

  1. relating to, characteristic of, or marked by skepticism
    • a skeptical listener

skep·ti·cism ['skep-tə-,si-zəm] -n

  1. an attitude of doubt or a disposition to incredulity either in general or toward a particular object
  2. the doctrine that true knowledge or knowledge in a particular area is uncertain
  3. the method of suspended judgment, systematic doubt, or criticism characteristic of skeptics
  4. doubt concerning basic religious principles (as immortality, providence, and revelation)

sker·ry ['sker-ē] -n

  1. a rocky isle : reef

sketch ['skech] -n

  1. a rough drawing representing the chief features of an object or scene and often made as a preliminary study
  2. a tentative draft (as for a literary work)
  3. a brief description (as of a person) or outline
  4. a short literary composition somewhat resembling the short story and the essay but intentionally slight in treatment, discursive in style, and familiar in tone
  5. a short instrumental composition usu. for piano
  6. a slight theatrical piece having a single scene
  7. a comic variety act
  8. to make a sketch, rough draft, or outline of
  9. to draw or paint a sketch

sketch·book ['skech-,bu̇k] -n

  1. a book of or for sketches

sketchy ['ske-chē] -adj, adv, n

  1. of the nature of a sketch : roughly outlined
  2. wanting in completeness, clearness, or substance : slight, superficial
    • the details are sketchy
  3. questionable, iffy
    • got into a sketchy situation
    • a sketchy character

skew ['skyü] -vb

  1. to take an oblique course
  2. to look askance
  3. to make, set, or cut on the skew
  4. to distort esp. from a true value or symmetrical form
    • skew ed statistical data
  5. set, placed, or running obliquely : slanting
  6. more developed on one side or in one direction than another : not symmetrical
  7. a deviation from a straight line : slant

skew·back ['skyü-,bak] -n

  1. a course of masonry, a stone, or an iron plate having an inclined face against which the voussoirs of an arch abut

skew·bald [-,bȯld] -adj

  1. marked with patches of white and any other color but black

skewbald -n

  1. a skewbald horse

skew curve -n

  1. a curve in three-dimensional space that does not lie in a single plane

skew distribution -n

  1. an unsymmetrical frequency distribution having the mode at a different value from the mean

skew·er ['skyü-ər, 'skyu̇r] -n

  1. a pin of wood or metal for fastening meat to keep it in form while roasting or to hold small pieces of meat or vegetables for broiling
  2. any of various things shaped or used like a meat skewer

skewer -vt

  1. to fasten or pierce with or as if with a skewer
  2. to criticize or ridicule sharply and effectively

skew lines -n pl

  1. straight lines that do not intersect and are not in the same plane

skew·ness ['skyü-nəs] -n

  1. lack of straightness or symmetry : distortion
  2. lack of symmetry in a frequency distribution

ski ['skē, Brit sometimes 'shē] -n

  1. one of a pair of narrow strips of wood, metal, or plastic curving upward in front that are used esp. for gliding over snow
  2. water ski
  3. a piece of material that resembles a ski and is used as a runner on a vehicle
  4. to glide on skis in travel or as a sport
  5. to travel or pass over on skis

skia·gram ['skī-ə-,gram] -n

  1. a figure formed by shading in the outline of a shadow
  2. radiograph

ski boot -n

  1. a rigid padded shoe that extends just above the ankle, is securely fastened to the foot (as with laces, buckles, or clasps), and is locked into position in a ski binding

skid ['skid] -n, adj

  1. one of a group of objects (as planks or logs) used to support or elevate a structure or object
  2. a wooden fender hung over a ship's side to protect it in handling cargo
  3. a usu. iron shoe or clog attached to a chain and placed under a wheel to prevent its turning when descending a steep hill : drag
  4. a timber, bar, rail, pole, or log used in pairs or sets to form a slideway (as for an incline from a truck to the sidewalk)
  5. the act of skidding : slip, sideslip
  6. a runner used as a member of the landing gear of an airplane or helicopter
  7. a route to defeat or downfall
    • on the skid s
    • his career hit the skid s
  8. a losing streak
    • a 5-game skid
  9. a low platform mounted (as on wheels) on which material is set for handling and moving
  10. pallet
  11. to apply a brake or skid to : slow or halt by a skid
  12. to haul (as logs) by dragging
    • cutting and skidding firewood
  13. to haul along, slide, hoist, or store on skids
  14. to slide without rotating (as a wheel held from turning while a vehicle moves onward)
  15. to fail to grip the roadway
  16. to slip sideways on the road
  17. to slide sideways away from the center of curvature when turning
  18. slide, slip
  19. to fall rapidly, steeply, or far
    • sales skidded last year

skid·der ['ski-dər] -n

  1. one that skids or uses a skid
  2. a tractor used esp. for hauling logs

skid·doo [ski-'dü, skē-] -vi

  1. to go away : depart

skid·dy ['ski-dē] -adj

  1. likely to skid or cause skidding
    • a wet skiddy road

skid road -n

  1. a road along which logs are skidded
  2. the part of a town frequented by loggers
  3. skid row

skid row [-'rō] -n

  1. a district of cheap saloons and flophouses frequented by vagrants and alcoholics

skiff ['skif] -n

  1. any of various small boats
  2. a flat-bottomed rowboat

skif·fle ['ski-fəl] -n

  1. American jazz or folk music played entirely or in part on nonstandard instruments (as jugs, washboards, or Jew's harps)
  2. a derivative form of music formerly popular in Great Britain featuring vocals with a simple instrumental accompaniment

skiing -n

  1. the art or sport of sliding and jumping on skis

ski·jor·ing ['skē-,jȯr-iŋ, (,)skē-'] -n

  1. a winter sport in which a person wearing skis is drawn over snow or ice (as by a horse or vehicle)

ski jump -n, vi

  1. a jump made by a person wearing skis
  2. a course or track esp. prepared for such jumping

skil·ful ['skil-fəl] -adj, adv, n

(variant of skillful)

  1. possessed of or displaying skill : expert
    • a skillful chef
  2. accomplished with skill
    • a skillful treatment

ski lift -n

  1. a motor-driven conveyor consisting usu. of a series of bars or seats suspended from an overhead moving cable and used for transporting skiers or sightseers up a long slope

skill ['skil] -vi

  1. to make a difference : matter, avail
  2. cause, reason
  3. the ability to use one's knowledge effectively and readily in execution or performance
  4. dexterity or coordination esp. in the execution of learned physical tasks
  5. a learned power of doing something competently : a developed aptitude or ability
    • language skill s

skilled ['skild] -adj

  1. having acquired mastery of or skill in something (as a technique or a trade)
    • skilled in the art of negotiation
  2. of, relating to, or requiring workers or labor with skill and training in a particular occupation, craft, or trade

skil·let ['ski-lət] -n

  1. a small kettle or pot usu. having three or four often long feet and used for cooking on the hearth
  2. frying pan

skill·ful ['skil-fəl] -adj, adv, n

  1. possessed of or displaying skill : expert
    • a skillful chef
  2. accomplished with skill
    • a skillful treatment

skim ['skim] -vb

  1. to clear (a liquid) of scum or floating substance
    • skim boiling syrup
  2. to remove (as film or scum) from the surface of a liquid
  3. to remove cream from by skimming
  4. to remove the best or most easily obtainable contents from
  5. to read, study, or examine superficially and rapidly
  6. to glance through (as a book) for the chief ideas or the plot
  7. to throw in a gliding path
  8. to throw so as to ricochet along the surface of water
  9. to cover with or as if with a film, scum, or coat
  10. to pass swiftly or lightly over
  11. to remove or conceal (as a portion of casino profits) to avoid payment of taxes
  12. embezzle
    • skimming money from employee pension plans
  13. to pass lightly or hastily : glide or skip along, above, or near a surface
  14. to give a cursory glance, consideration, or reading
  15. to become coated with a thin layer of film or scum
  16. to put on a finishing coat of plaster
  17. to embezzle money
  18. a thin layer, coating, or film
  19. the act of skimming
  20. something skimmed
  21. skim milk
  22. having the cream removed by skimming
  23. made of skim milk
    • skim cheese

ski mask -n

  1. a knit fabric mask that covers the head, has openings for the eyes, mouth, and sometimes the nose, and is worn esp. by skiers for protection from the cold

skim·bleskam·ble [,skim-bəl-'skam-bəl] -adj

  1. rambling and confused : senseless

skim·mer ['ski-mər] -n

  1. one that skims
  2. a flat perforated scoop or spoon used for skimming
  3. any of a small genus ( Rynchops) of long-winged marine birds that have the lower mandible longer than the upper
  4. a usu. straw flat-crowned hat with a wide straight brim
  5. a fitted sleeveless dress with a usu. flaring skirt

skim milk -n

  1. milk from which the cream has been taken called also skimmed milk

skimming -n

  1. that which is skimmed from a liquid

ski·mo·bile ['skē-mō-,bēl] -n

  1. snowmobile

skimp ['skimp] -adj

  1. skimpy
  2. to give insufficient or barely sufficient attention or effort to or funds for
  3. to save by or as if by skimping

skimpy ['skim-pē] -adj, adv, n

  1. deficient in supply or execution esp. through skimping : scanty

skin ['skin] -n, adj

  1. the integument of an animal (as a fur-bearing mammal or a bird) separated from the body usu. with its hair or feathers
  2. a usu. unmounted specimen of a vertebrate (as in a museum)
  3. the hide or pelt of a game or domestic animal
  4. the pelt of an animal prepared for use as a trimming or in a garment
  5. a sheet of parchment or vellum made from a hide
  6. bottle
  7. the external limiting tissue layer of an animal body
  8. the 2-layered covering of a vertebrate body consisting of an outer epidermis and an inner dermis
  9. an outer covering (as a rind or husk) of a fruit or seed
  10. a membranous film or scum (as on boiling milk or drying paint)
  11. the life or physical well-being of a person
    • saved his own skin
  12. a sheathing or casing forming the outside surface of a structure (as a ship or airplane)
  13. to strip, scrape, or rub off an outer covering (as the skin or rind) of
  14. to strip or peel off
  15. to cut, chip, or damage the surface of
    • fell and skinned my knee
  16. to cover with or as if with skin
  17. to heal over with skin
  18. to strip of money or property : fleece
  19. to defeat badly
  20. censure, castigate
  21. to urge on and direct the course of (as a draft animal)
  22. to become covered with or as if with skin
  23. shinny
  24. to pass or get by with scant room to spare
  25. involving subjects who are nude
    • expected to conduct skin searches for weapons -- Diane K. Shah
  26. devoted to showing nudes
    • skin magazines

skindeep ['skin-'dēp] -adj

  1. as deep as the skin
  2. not thorough or lasting in impression : superficial

skin diving -n, vi

  1. the sport of swimming under water with a face mask and flippers and esp. without a portable breathing device

skin·flint ['skin-,flint] -n

  1. a person who would save, gain, or extort money by any means : miser

skin·ful [-,fu̇l] -n

  1. a large or satisfying quantity esp. of liquor
  2. the contents of a skin bottle

skin game -n

  1. a swindling game or trick

skin graft -n

  1. a piece of skin that is surgically removed from a donor area to replace skin in a defective or denuded area (as one that has been burned)
  2. the procedure by which such a piece of skin is removed and transferred to a new area

skin·head ['skin-,hed] -n

  1. a person whose hair is cut very short
  2. a usu. white male belonging to any of various sometimes violent youth gangs whose members have close-shaven hair and often espouse white-supremacist beliefs

skink ['skiŋk] -vt

  1. to draw, pour out, or serve (drink)
  2. any of a family (Scincidae) of typically small insectivorous lizards with long tapering bodies

skink·er ['skiŋ-kər] -n

  1. one that serves liquor : bartender

skinned -adj

  1. having skin esp. of a specified kind usu. used in combination
    • dark- skinned

skin·ner ['ski-nər] -n

  1. one that deals in skins, pelts, or hides
  2. one that removes, cures, or dresses skins
  3. sharper
  4. a driver of draft animals : teamster

Skin·ner box ['ski-nər-,bäks] -n

  1. a laboratory apparatus in which an animal is caged for experiments in operant conditioning and which typically contains a lever that must be pressed by the animal to gain reward or avoid punishment

skin·ny ['ski-nē] -adj, n

  1. resembling skin : membranous
  2. lacking sufficient flesh : very thin : emaciated
  3. lacking usual or desirable bulk, quantity, qualities, or significance

skinny -n

  1. inside information : dope
    • the straight skinny on what's going on -- John Geary

skin·nydip ['ski-nē-,dip] -vi, n

  1. to swim in the nude

skinpop ['skin-'päp] -vi, n

  1. to inject a drug subcutaneously rather than into a vein
  2. to inject (a drug) by skin-popping

skint ['skint] -adj

  1. penniless

skin test -n

  1. a test (as a scratch test) performed on the skin and used in detecting allergic hypersensitivity

skin·tight ['skin-'tīt] -adj

  1. closely fitted to the figure
    • skintight pants

skip ['skip] -vb, adj

  1. to move or proceed with leaps and bounds or with a skip
  2. to bound off one point after another : ricochet
  3. to leave hurriedly or secretly
    • skipped out without paying their bill
  4. to pass over or omit an interval, item, or step
  5. to omit a grade in school in advancing to the next
  6. misfire
  7. to pass over without notice or mention : omit
    • skipped her name
  8. to pass by or leave out (a step in a progression or series)
  9. to cause to skip (a grade in school)
  10. to cause to bound or skim over a surface
    • skip a stone across a pond
  11. to leap over lightly and nimbly
  12. to depart from quickly and secretly
    • skipped town
  13. to fail to attend or participate in
    • skip the tournament
    • skip the meeting
  14. a light bounding step
  15. a gait composed of alternating hops and steps
  16. an act of omission or the thing omitted
  17. the captain of a side in a game (as curling or lawn bowling) who advises the team as to the play and controls the action
  18. skipper
  19. to act as skipper of

skip bomb -vt

  1. to attack by releasing delayed-action bombs from a low-flying airplane so that they skip along a land or water surface and strike a target

skip·jack ['skip-,jak] -n

  1. any of various fishes (as a ladyfish or bluefish) that jump above or are active at the surface of the water
  2. skipjack tuna
  3. a sailboat with vertical sides and a bottom similar to a flat V

skipjack tuna -n

  1. a relatively small tuna ( Katsuwonus pelamissyn. Euthynnus pelamis) that is bluish above and silvery below with oblique dark stripes on the sides and belly

ski pole -n

  1. one of a pair of lightweight poles used in skiing that have a handgrip and usu. a wrist strap at one end and an encircling disk set above the point at the other end

skip·per ['ski-pər] -n

  1. any of various erratically active insects (as a click beetle or a water strider)
  2. one that skips
  3. saury
  4. any of a superfamily (Hesperioidea, esp. family Hesperiidae) of lepidopterous insects that visibly differ from the typical butterflies esp. in having stout bodies, smaller wings, and usu. hooked antennae

skipper -n

  1. the master of a ship
  2. the master of a fishing, small trading, or pleasure boat
  3. the captain or first pilot of an airplane
  4. a person in a position of leadership
  5. a baseball team's manager

skip·per ['ski-p(ə-)riŋ] -vt

  1. to act as skipper of (as a boat)
  2. to act as coach of (as a team)

skirl ['skər(-ə)l, 'skir(-ə)l] -vb

  1. to emit the high shrill tone of the chanter
  2. to give forth music
  3. to play (music) on the bagpipe
  4. a high shrill sound produced by the chanter of a bagpipe

skir·mish ['skər-mish] -n

  1. a minor fight in war usu. incidental to larger movements
  2. a brisk preliminary verbal conflict
  3. a minor dispute or contest between opposing parties
    • the debate touched off a skirmish

skirmish -vi, n

  1. to engage in a skirmish
  2. to search about (as for supplies) : scout around

skirr ['skər, 'skir] -vb

  1. to leave hastily : flee
    • birds skirr ed off from the bushes -- D. H. Lawrence
  2. to run, fly, sail, or move along rapidly
  3. to search about in
    • skirr the country round -- Shak.
  4. to pass rapidly over : skim

skirt ['skərt] -n, adj

  1. a free-hanging part of an outer garment or undergarment extending from the waist down
  2. a separate free-hanging outer garment or undergarment usu. worn by women and girls covering some or all of the body from the waist down
  3. either of two usu. leather flaps on a saddle covering the bars on which the stirrups are hung
  4. a cloth facing that hangs from the bottom edge or across the front of a piece of furniture
  5. the lower branches of a tree when near the ground
  6. the rim, periphery, or environs of an area
  7. outlying parts (as of a town or city)
  8. a part or attachment serving as a rim, border, or edging
  9. a girl or woman
  10. to form or run along the border or edge of : border
  11. to provide a skirt for
  12. to furnish a border or shield for
  13. to go or pass around or about
  14. to go around or keep away from in order to avoid danger or discovery
  15. to avoid esp. because of difficulty or fear of controversy
    • skirt ed the issue
  16. to evade or miss by a narrow margin
    • having skirt ed disaster -- Edith Wharton
  17. to be, lie, or move along an edge or border

skirt·ing ['skər-tiŋ] -n

  1. : something that skirts: as
  2. border, edging
  3. baseboard called also skirting board
  4. fabric suitable for skirts

skirt steak -n

  1. a boneless strip of beef cut from the plate

ski run -n

  1. a slope or trail suitable for skiing

skit ['skit] -n

  1. a jeering or satirical remark : taunt
  2. a satirical or humorous story or sketch
  3. a brief burlesque or comic sketch included in a dramatic performance (as a revue)
  4. a short serious dramatic piece
  5. one done by amateurs

ski touring -n

  1. cross-country skiing for pleasure

ski tow -n

  1. a motor-driven conveyor that is used for pulling skiers up a slope and that consists usu. of an endless moving rope which a skier grasps
  2. ski lift

skit·ter ['ski-tər] -vb

  1. to glide or skip lightly or quickly
  2. to move in or as in a jittery or jerky way
    • leaves skitter ing over the sidewalk
  3. to twitch the hook of a fishing line through or along the surface of water
  4. to cause to skitter

skit·tery ['ski-tə-rē] -adj

  1. skittish

skit·tish ['ski-tish] -adj, adv, n

  1. lively or frisky in action : capricious
  2. variable, fluctuating
  3. easily frightened : restive
    • a skittish horse
  4. coy, bashful
  5. marked by extreme caution : wary
    • skittish investors

skit·tle ['ski-tᵊl] -n

  1. English ninepins played with a wooden disk or ball
  2. one of the pins used in skittles

skive ['skīv] -vt

  1. to cut off (as leather or rubber) in thin layers or pieces : pare

skiv·er ['skī-vər] -n

  1. a thin soft leather made of the grain side of a split sheepskin, usu. tanned in sumac and dyed
  2. one that skives something (as leather)

Skiv·vies ['ski-vēz] -trademark

  1. used for men's underwear

skiv·vy ['ski-vē] -n

  1. a female domestic servant

ski·wear ['skē-,wer] -n

  1. clothing suitable for wear while skiing

skoal ['skōl] -n

  1. toast, health often used interjectionally

skort ['skȯrt] -n

  1. a pair of shorts made to resemble a skirt (as with an overlapping front panel)

skosh ['skōsh] -n

  1. a small amount : bit, smidgen used adverbially with a
    • just a skosh bit shook -- Josiah Bunting

SKU -abbr

  1. stock-keeping unit

skua ['skyü-ə] -n

  1. : any of various seabirds (genus Catharacta) related to the jaegers: as
  2. great skua
  3. a bird ( C. maccormicki) that resembles but is slightly smaller than the great skua and that breeds in the Antarctic

skul·dug·gery [,skəl-'də-g(ə-)rē, 'skəl-,] -n

  1. underhanded or unscrupulous behavior
  2. a devious device or trick

skulk ['skəlk] -vi, n

  1. to move in a stealthy or furtive manner
    • skulk ed into her sister's room
  2. to hide or conceal something (as oneself) often out of cowardice or fear or with sinister intent
  3. malinger
  4. one that skulks
  5. a group of foxes

skull ['skəl] -n, adj

  1. the skeleton of the head of a vertebrate forming a bony or cartilaginous case that encloses and protects the brain and chief sense organs and supports the jaws
  2. the seat of understanding or intelligence : mind
  3. to hit on the head
  4. to unintentionally hit (a golf ball or shot) with the bottom edge of the clubface

skull and cross·bones [-'krȯs-,bōnz] -n

  1. a representation of a human skull over crossbones usu. used as a warning of danger to life

skull·cap ['skəl-,kap] -n

  1. a close-fitting cap
  2. a light brimless cap for indoor wear
  3. any of various mints (genus Scutellaria) having a bell-shaped calyx that when inverted resembles a helmet
  4. the upper portion of the skull : calvarium

skull session -n

  1. a strategy class for an athletic team
  2. a meeting for consultation, discussion, or the interchange of ideas or information called also skull practice

skunk ['skəŋk] -n

  1. any of various common omnivorous black-and-white New World mammals (esp. genus Mephitis) of the weasel family that have a pair of perineal glands from which a secretion of pungent and offensive odor is ejected
  2. the fur of a skunk
  3. an obnoxious or disliked person
  4. defeat
  5. to prevent entirely from scoring or succeeding : shut out
  6. to fail to pay
  7. cheat

skunk·brush ['skəŋk-brəsh] -n

  1. squawbush

skunk cabbage -n

  1. : either of two No. American perennial herbs of the arum family that occur in shaded wet to swampy areas and have a fetid odor suggestive of a skunk:
  2. one ( Symplocarpus foetidus) of eastern No. America that sends up in spring a cowl-shaped brownish-purple spathe
  3. one ( Lysichiton americanus) chiefly of the Pacific coast region that has a large yellow spathe

Skunk Works -service mark

  1. used for research and development services

skunky ['skəŋ-kē] -adj

  1. having a rancid smell or taste suggestive of a skunk
    • skunky beer

sky ['skī] -n

  1. the upper atmosphere or expanse of space that constitutes an apparent great vault or arch over the earth
  2. heaven
  3. weather in the upper atmosphere
  4. climate
    • temperate English skies -- G. G. Coulton
  5. to throw or toss up : flip
  6. to hang (as a painting) above the line of vision
  7. to hit (a ball) high into the air
  8. to jump high
    • sky for a rebound

sky blue -n

  1. a pale to light blue color

sky·borne ['skī-,bȯrn] -adj

  1. airborne
    • skyborne troops

sky·box [-,bäks] -n

  1. a roofed enclosure of private seats situated high in a sports stadium and typically featuring luxurious amenities

sky·cap [-,kap] -n

  1. one employed to carry hand luggage at an airport

sky·div·ing [-,dī-viŋ] -n, vi

  1. the sport of jumping from an airplane at a moderate altitude (as 6000 feet) and executing various body maneuvers before pulling the rip cord of a parachute

Skye terrier ['skī-] -n

  1. any of a Scottish breed of small short-legged terriers with a long body and long straight coat

sky·ey ['skī-ē] -adj

  1. of or resembling the sky : ethereal

skyhigh ['skī-'hī] -adv

  1. high into the air
  2. to a high or exorbitant level or degree
    • lifted my spirit skyhigh -- Elmer Morriss
  3. in an enthusiastic manner
  4. to bits : apart
    • blown skyhigh
  5. excessively expensive : exorbitant
  6. extremely or excessively high
    • her blood pressure was skyhigh

sky·hook [-,hu̇k] -n

  1. a hook conceived as being suspended from the sky

sky·jack ['skī-,jak] -vt, n

  1. to commandeer (an airplane in flight) by the threat of violence

sky·lark ['skī-,lärk] -n

  1. a common largely brown Old World lark ( Alauda arvensis) noted for its song esp. as uttered in flight
  2. any of various birds resembling the skylark

skylark -vi, n

  1. to run up and down the rigging of a ship in sport
  2. frolic, sport

sky·light ['skī-,līt] -n

  1. the diffused and reflected light of the sky
  2. an opening in a house roof or ship's deck that is covered with translucent or transparent material and that is designed to admit light

sky·light·ed [-,lī-təd] -adj

  1. having a skylight

sky·line [-,līn] -n

  1. the apparent juncture of earth and sky : horizon
  2. an outline (as of buildings or a mountain range) against the background of the sky

sky marshal -n

  1. an armed federal plainclothesman assigned to prevent skyjackings

sky pilot -n

  1. clergyman
  2. chaplain

sky·rock·et ['skī-,rä-kət] -n

  1. rocket

skyrocket -vt

  1. to cause to rise or increase abruptly and rapidly
  2. catapult
  3. to shoot up abruptly
    • prices are skyrocket ing

sky·sail ['skī-,sāl, -səl] -n

  1. the sail above the royal

sky·scrap·er [-,skrā-pər] -n

  1. a very tall building

sky·scrap·ing [-,skrā-piŋ] -adj

  1. extraordinarily tall or high
    • skyscraping basketball players

sky·surf·ing [-,sər-fiŋ] -n

  1. skydiving in which the participant performs maneuvers during free fall while riding on a modified surfboard

sky·walk [-,wȯk] -n

  1. a usu. enclosed aerial walkway connecting two buildings

sky·ward [-wərd] -adv

  1. toward the sky
  2. upward

sky wave -n

  1. a radio wave that is propagated by means of the ionosphere

sky·way ['skī-,wā] -n

  1. a route used by airplanes : air lane
  2. an elevated highway
  3. skywalk

sky·write [-,rīt] -vb, n

  1. to letter by skywriting
  2. to do skywriting

skywriting -n

  1. writing formed in the sky by means of a visible substance (as smoke) emitted from an airplane