sky

[ skahy ]
See synonyms for: skyskiedskiesskyed on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural skies.Often skies (for defs. 1-4).
  1. the region of the clouds or the upper air; the upper atmosphere of the earth: airplanes in the sky; cloudy skies.

  2. the heavens or firmament, appearing as a great arch or vault.

  1. the supernal or celestial heaven: They looked to the sky for help.

  2. the climate: the sunny skies of Italy.

  3. Obsolete. a cloud.

verb (used with object),skied or skyed, sky·ing.
  1. Informal. to raise, throw, or hit aloft or into the air.

  2. Informal. to hang (a painting) high on a wall, above the line of vision.

Verb Phrases
  1. sky up, Falconry. (of prey, when flushed) to fly straight upward.

Idioms about sky

  1. out of a / the clear sky, without advance notice or warning; abruptly: An old beau phoned her out of a clear sky.: Also out of a / the clear blue sky .

  2. to the skies, with lavishness or enthusiasm; extravagantly: to praise someone to the skies.: Also to the sky .

Origin of sky

1
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English, from Old Norse skȳ “cloud,” cognate with Old English scēo “cloud”

Other words from sky

  • skyless, adjective
  • skylike, adjective

Words Nearby sky

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

How to use sky in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sky

sky

/ (skaɪ) /


nounplural skies
  1. (sometimes plural) the apparently dome-shaped expanse extending upwards from the horizon that is characteristically blue or grey during the day, red in the evening, and black at night: Related adjectives: celestial, empyrean

  2. outer space, as seen from the earth

  1. (often plural) weather, as described by the appearance of the upper air: sunny skies

  2. the source of divine power; heaven

  3. informal the highest level of attainment: the sky's the limit

  4. to the skies highly; extravagantly

verbskies, skying or skied
  1. rowing to lift (the blade of an oar) too high before a stroke

  2. (tr) informal to hit (a ball) high in the air

Origin of sky

1
C13: from Old Norse skӯ; related to Old English scio cloud, Old Saxon skio, Old Norse skjār transparent skin

Derived forms of sky

  • skylike, adjective

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

Scientific definitions for sky

sky

[ skī ]


  1. The atmosphere, as seen from a given point on the Earth's surface. The sky appears to be blue because the wavelengths associated with blue light are scattered more easily than those that are associated with the other colors.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with sky

sky

In addition to the idiom beginning with sky

, also see

  • blow sky-high
  • out of a clear blue sky
  • pie in the sky

reach for the sky.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.