skirt
skirt — noun
- skirtsingular
- skirtsplural
1. a garment that fits around your waist and hangs freely over part or all of your
a garment that fits around your waist and hangs freely over part or all of your legs, typically for women and girls
Sophia wore a white cotton skirt and a blue top to the job interview.
The school asks students to wear gray skirts or trousers as part of the uniform.
Lara twirled in her new floral skirt, showing it off to her classmates.
Ari bought a long black skirt for the wedding because it looked elegant.
collocation: long / short / pleated / denim skirt
- wear a skirt
- long skirt
- short skirt
- pleated skirt
- floral skirt
- denim skirt
Common Mistakes
2. the section hanging below the waist on a long garment such as a dress, coat, or
the section hanging below the waist on a long garment such as a dress, coat, or jacket
Tamás sewed a new hem onto the skirt of his wife's coat after it came loose.
the skirt of [coat / dress / jacket]
The dress had a tight top section and a wide, flowing skirt from the waist down.
Reuben admired how the skirt of the jacket flared out slightly at the lower back.
The tailor added extra fabric to the skirt of the uniform so it would hang better.
- skirt of a dress
- skirt of a coat
- skirt of a jacket
- flowing skirt
- tight skirt
- hem
refers only to the very bottom edge or folded border of a garment, not the whole section below the waist
Usage Note
This sense refers only to the lower section of a longer garment, not to a separate standalone piece of clothing. The context — a dress, coat, or jacket — tells the reader which meaning is intended.
3. a tough outer panel fitted near the bottom of equipment, keeping dirt and debris
a tough outer panel fitted near the bottom of equipment, keeping dirt and debris away from its internal moving parts
The mechanic removed the rubber skirt from the bottom of the car to check for oil leaks.
A heavy plastic skirt protects the base of the lawnmower from stones and mud.
protective skirt — shields machine parts from damage
Yan checked the rubber skirt around the conveyor belt for signs of wear or tearing.
The dust cover acts as a soft skirt, keeping dirt away from the machine's moving parts.
- rubber skirt
- protective skirt
- dust skirt
- skirt of a machine
- skirt around
Usage Note
Common in technical and mechanical contexts. The material is usually rubber, plastic, or heavy fabric. Often used in compound phrases: 'rubber skirt', 'dust skirt', 'protective skirt'.
4. a thin cut of beef taken from the lower side of a cow, known for its strong flav
a thin cut of beef taken from the lower side of a cow, known for its strong flavour and often used in grilling or stir-fry dishes
The chef grilled a skirt steak and served it with roasted vegetables and rice.
skirt steak — compound noun for this cut
Skirt steak is a thin cut of beef that works very well for stir-fry dishes.
Bilal marinated the beef skirt overnight before cooking it on the barbecue.
Because skirt comes from the cow's lower side, it has a strong, beefy taste.
- skirt steak
- beef skirt
- grilled skirt
- marinated skirt
- flank steak
a different cut from the belly area of the cow, often confused with skirt steak but slightly wider and less flavourful
Usage Note
Almost always used in the compound 'skirt steak' or the phrase 'beef skirt'. This cut is different from 'flank steak', which comes from a nearby area of the animal.
Common Mistakes
5. an old-fashioned and offensive way to refer to women, especially when they are v
an old-fashioned and offensive way to refer to women, especially when they are viewed as sexually attractive objects rather than as people
Soraya felt uncomfortable when her coworker described the new hire as a young skirt.
The characters in that 1950s show call every woman skirt, which sounds very dated today.
When William's grandfather uses the word skirt for women, his granddaughter corrects him.
The script was criticized for using skirt as a crude way to refer to female characters.
offensive register: dated slang with sexist connotations
- piece of skirt
- young skirt
- woman
the neutral and respectful term; always preferred
Usage Note
Offensive and outdated. Modern English speakers consider this term disrespectful. Avoid using it in speech or writing. The phrase 'piece of skirt' is especially derogatory.
skirt — verb
- skirtpresent simple I / you / we / they
- skirts3rd person singular
- skirting-ing form
- skirtedpast simple
1. to move along the outer edge of a place or object instead of going through or ac
to move along the outer edge of a place or object instead of going through or across it
The road skirts the old town before joining the main highway two miles south.
Yan skirted around the puddle on the sidewalk to keep his new shoes dry.
skirt around — common phrasal pattern with 'around'
The hiking trail skirts the eastern edge of the lake for about half a kilometre.
Instead of driving through downtown, Vikram skirted the suburbs to avoid the traffic jam.
- skirt around
- skirt the edge of
- skirt the city
- skirt the lake
- skirt the town
Grammar Patterns
skirt + noun phrase
skirt around + noun phrase
Usage Note
Often used with 'around' as an optional particle: 'skirt around' and 'skirt' are interchangeable. The subject is usually a road, path, trail, or a person moving.
2. to avoid talking about a difficult or unpleasant subject, especially by changing
to avoid talking about a difficult or unpleasant subject, especially by changing the topic or giving vague answers
During the meeting, the manager skirted the question about layoffs by changing the topic.
The politician carefully skirted the issue of tax increases in her speech to voters.
skirt + issue / question / subject — typical objects
Sophia tried to skirt around the uncomfortable topic, but her friend kept pressing for an answer.
Reporters asked about the financial scandal, but the CEO skirted every difficult question.
- skirt the issue
- skirt the question
- skirt the subject
- skirt the topic
- skirt around
Grammar Patterns
skirt + noun phrase (issue / question / subject / topic)
Usage Note
Object is typically an abstract noun related to discussion: 'issue', 'question', 'subject', 'topic', 'problem'. 'Skirt around' can also be used with the same meaning. Not used with people as objects — you do not 'skirt a person'.
Common Mistakes
3. to form a border along the edge of an area — used when trees, paths, walls, or o
to form a border along the edge of an area — used when trees, paths, walls, or other features lie next to or around a place
Tall pine trees skirt the northern edge of the property, blocking the wind.
A narrow path of white stones skirts the entire garden from east to west.
The national park is skirted by small farming villages on three of its sides.
passive: be skirted by [something]
Fields of wheat skirt the village on both sides of the river valley.
- skirt a path
- skirt a garden
- skirt a lake
- be skirted by
- skirt the village
Grammar Patterns
skirt + noun phrase
be skirted by + noun phrase
Usage Note
Frequently used with geographical features: trees, paths, roads, rivers, walls, and fields. The passive form 'is skirted by' is common. Unlike verb sense 1, this sense describes a static arrangement rather than a movement.
Common Mistakes
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: verb/1
All four describe moving along an edge or avoiding the centre of a place, but they differ in how closely they follow the boundary. 'Skirt' suggests staying very close to the outer edge — you follow the contour of a place rather than cutting across it. 'Bypass' emphasises avoiding a congested area entirely by using an alternative route; it does not imply following the edge closely. 'Go around' is the most general and neutral — you can go around a puddle, a city, or a rule, without specifying how close you stay to its boundary. 'Circle' implies a full or partial loop around something, often returning to the starting point. For example: 'We skirted the lake on a narrow trail' (following the shore), 'Trucks bypass the town on the ring road' (avoiding the centre), 'Let's go around the fallen tree' (simple detour), and 'The plane circled the airport twice before landing' (looping around).
Common collocations
Prepositions
Etymology
The word 'skirt' comes from Old Norse 'skyrta', meaning 'shirt', and is related to Old English 'scyrte' (a short garment). In Middle English, the word shifted from describing a shirt-like top to referring specifically to the lower hanging part of clothing. By the 1500s it was used for a separate garment worn from the waist down. The verb senses developed later from the idea of moving along the hem or edge of something, like the border of a skirt.