skirt

skirt (skûrt)

1. The part of a garment, such as a dress or coat, that hangs freely from the waist down.

2. A garment hanging from the waist and worn by women and girls.

3. A part or attachment resembling the skirt of a garment, especially:

a. One of the leather flaps hanging from the side of a saddle.

b. The lower outer section of a rocket vehicle.

c. A flexible strip hanging from the base of an air-cushion vehicle.

d. A piece of fabric that extends over or beyond something to afford protection.

4. An outer edge; a border or margin: a base camp on the skirt of the mountain.

5. skirts The edge, as of a town; the outskirts.

6. Offensive Slang A woman.

v. skirt·ed, skirt·ing, skirts

v.tr.

1. To lie along or form the edge of; border: the creek that skirts our property.

2. To pass around rather than across or through: changed their course to skirt the storm.

3. To pass close to; miss narrowly: The bullet skirted an artery.

4. To evade, as by circumlocution: skirted the controversial issue.

v.intr.

To lie along, move along, or be an edge or a border.

[Middle English, from Old Norse skyrta, shirt; see sker-¹ in Indo-European roots.]

skirt

Noun

1. a woman's or girl's garment hanging from the waist

2. the part of a dress or coat below the waist

3. a circular hanging flap, for example round the base of a hovercraft

4. Brit & NZ a cut of beef from the flank

5. bit of skirt Offensive slang a girl or woman

Verb

1. to lie along or form the edge of (something): a track skirting the foot of the mountain

2. to go around the outer edge of (something): we skirted the township

3. to avoid dealing with (an issue): I was skirting around the real issues [Old Norse skyrta shirt]

Skirt the edge of a crowd; a number of trees bordering or surrounding a place, 1617.

Examples: skirt of the enemy host, 1577; of the thickets, 1835; skirts of the cause, 1629; of congregation, 1764; of the crowd, 1894; of human nature, 1820; of the night, 1624; of power, 1839; of religion, 1648; of wood, 1617.

ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms

Noun	1.	skirt - cloth covering that forms the part of a garment below the waist cloth covering - a covering made of cloth garment - an article of clothing; "garments of the finest silk" lap covering, lap - the part of a piece of clothing that covers the thighs; "his lap was covered with food stains" seat - the cloth covering for the buttocks; "the seat of his pants was worn through"
	2.	skirt - a garment hanging from the waist; worn mainly by girls and women ballet skirt, tutu - very short skirt worn by ballerinas box pleat - a flat double pleat made by folding under the fabric on either side of it culotte - a divided skirt full skirt - a long skirt gathered at the waist garment - an article of clothing; "garments of the finest silk" gathered skirt - a skirt whose fabric is drawn together around the waist grass skirt - a skirt made of long blades of grass hobble skirt - a long skirt very narrow below the knees, worn between 1910 and 1914 crinoline, hoopskirt - a skirt stiffened with hoops kick pleat - pleat in back of a straight skirt to allow ease in walking kilt - a knee-length pleated tartan skirt worn by men as part of the traditional dress in the Highlands of northern Scotland lavalava - a skirt consisting of a rectangle of calico or printed cotton; worn by Polynesians (especially Samoans) maxi - a long skirt ending below the calf mini, miniskirt - a very short skirt overskirt - an outer skirt worn over another skirt placket - a piece of cloth sewn under an opening sarong - a loose skirt consisting of brightly colored fabric wrapped around the body; worn by both women and men in the South Pacific slide fastener, zip fastener, zipper, zip - a fastener for locking together two toothed edges by means of a sliding tab sunburst pleat, sunray pleat - knife pleat cut on the bias to produce a flared effect hemline - the line formed by the lower edge of a skirt or coat
	3.	skirt - (Fungi) a remnant of the partial veil that in mature mushrooms surrounds the stem like a collar annulus Fungi, fungus kingdom, kingdom Fungi - the taxonomic kingdom including yeast, molds, smuts, mushrooms, and toadstools; distinct from the green plants plant part, plant structure - any part of a plant or fungus partial veil - membrane of the young sporophore of various mushrooms extending from the margin of the cap to the stem and is ruptured by growth; represented in mature mushroom by an annulus around the stem and sometimes a cortina on the margin of the cap
	4.	skirt - informal terms for a (young) woman dame, wench, doll, chick, bird fille, girl, miss, missy, young lady, young woman - a young woman; "a young lady of 18"
Verb	1.	skirt - avoid or try to avoid fulfilling, answering, or performing (duties, questions, or issues); "He dodged the issue"; "she skirted the problem"; "They tend to evade their responsibilities"; "he evaded the questions skillfully" evade, hedge, sidestep, parry, fudge, circumvent, dodge, elude, duck, put off beg - dodge, avoid answering, or take for granted; "beg the question"; "beg the point in the discussion" quibble - evade the truth of a point or question by raising irrelevant objections avoid - stay clear from; keep away from; keep out of the way of someone or something; "Her former friends now avoid her"
	2.	skirt - pass around or about; move along the border; "The boat skirted the coast" go past, pass by, travel by, go by, pass, surpass - move past; "A black limousine passed by when she looked out the window"; "He passed his professor in the hall"; "One line of soldiers surpassed the other"
	3.	skirt - form the edge of border, bound - form the boundary of; be contiguous to
	4.	skirt - extend on all sides of simultaneously; encircle; "The forest surrounds my property" border, environ, surround, ring adjoin, contact, touch, meet - be in direct physical contact with; make contact; "The two buildings touch"; "Their hands touched"; "The wire must not contact the metal cover"; "The surfaces contact at this point" fringe - decorate with or as if with a surrounding fringe; "fur fringed the hem of the dress" gird, girdle - put a girdle on or around; "gird your loins" cloister - surround with a cloister; "cloister the garden" inclose, shut in, close in, enclose - surround completely; "Darkness enclosed him"; "They closed in the porch with a fence" hem in - surround in a restrictive manner; "The building was hemmed in by flowers" cloister - surround with a cloister, as of a garden