skirt
- 01 A1 Beginner
n.a piece of clothing that hangs from the waist and covers part of the legs.
n.a garment, or the lower part of a dress or coat, that hangs from the waist down.
Simple“She chose a long, floral skirt to wear to the garden party.”
In context“The traditional costume consists of a heavily embroidered woollen skirt paired with a linen blouse and a silk waistcoat.”
- 02 C1 Advanced
n.the outer edge or border of an area.
n.the border, edge, or margin of a physical area or object.
Simple“They built a small cabin on the skirt of the forest.”
In context“The nomadic tribes settled briefly on the southern skirts of the desert before moving toward the mountain passes.”
- 03 C2 Proficiency
n.an old-fashioned and often rude way to talk about a woman.
n.a derogatory or highly informal reference to a woman or women collectively, often in a sexualised context.
Simple“He spent the whole night at the bar chasing skirt.”
In context“The film was criticised for its dated dialogue, particularly the protagonist's tendency to refer to his female colleagues as skirt.”
Teacher's tipThis sense is considered offensive and sexist in modern English; learners should avoid using it.
- 04 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to go around the edge of something rather than through the middle.
v.to move along or be situated at the edge of something.
Simple“The new highway skirts the city to reduce traffic in the center.”
In context“The hikers decided to skirt the marshland rather than risk getting stuck in the deep mud of the interior.”
- 05 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to avoid talking about a difficult subject or problem.
v.to avoid dealing with a difficult issue or to mention a topic only indirectly.
Simple“The politician skirted the question about taxes and talked about schools instead.”
In context“During the press conference, the CEO carefully skirted the issue of potential layoffs, focusing instead on the company's quarterly growth.”
From Middle English skyrte, from Old Norse skyrta, from Proto-Germanic *skurtijǭ. Doublet of shirt. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Skoarte (“apron”), Dutch schort (“apron”), German Schürze (“apron”), Danish skørt (“skirt”), Swedish skört (“hem of a jacket”), Norwegian skjørt (“skirt”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.