skirmish

[ skur-mish ]
See synonyms for skirmish on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Military. a fight between small bodies of troops, especially advanced or outlying detachments of opposing armies.

  2. any brisk conflict or encounter: She had a skirmish with her landlord about the rent.

verb (used without object)
  1. to engage in a skirmish.

Origin of skirmish

1
1300–50; (noun) Middle English skirmysshe<Old French eskirmiss-, long stem of eskirmir<Germanic (compare Old High German skirman); replacing Middle English scarmouche<Old French escaramoucher (see Scaramouch); (v.) late Middle English scarmuchen, scarmusshen to skirmish, Middle English skirmisshen to brandish a weapon <Old French escar(a)mucher to skirmish; vowels influenced by Old French eskirmiss-

synonym study For skirmish

1. See battle1.

Other words for skirmish

Other words from skirmish

  • skir·mish·er, noun
  • outskirmish, verb (used with object)

Words Nearby skirmish

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use skirmish in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for skirmish

skirmish

/ (ˈskɜːmɪʃ) /


noun
  1. a minor short-lived military engagement

  2. any brisk clash or encounter, usually of a minor nature

verb
  1. (intr often foll by with) to engage in a skirmish

Origin of skirmish

1
C14: from Old French eskirmir, of Germanic origin; related to Old High German skirmen to defend

Derived forms of skirmish

  • skirmisher, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012