askew

[uh-skyoo]

See more synonyms for askew on Thesaurus.com

adverb

to one side; out of line; in a crooked position; awry: to wear one's hat askew; to hang a picture askew.
with disapproval, scorn, contempt, etc.; disdainfully: They looked askew at the painting.

adjective

crooked; awry: Your clothes are all askew.

Origin of askew

First recorded in 1565–75; a-¹ + skew

Related formsa·skew·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for askew

off-center, awry, askance, bent, cockeyed, curved, knotted, lopsided, oblique, obliquely, slanting, twisted, zigzag, askant, aslant, catawampus, crookedly, turned

Examples from the Web for askew

Historical Examples of askew

He pushed it askew; and then, since he did not need it now, discarded it altogether.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, October, 1930
Various
Osborne resold this inimitable windfall to Dr Askew for sixty guineas.
The Book-Hunter
John Hill Burton
They hung all askew, helplessly pinned, some broadside, some upended.
Wandl the Invader
Raymond King Cummings
Its old logs, disjoined and askew, were all but on the ground.
Virginia of Elk Creek Valley
Mary Ellen Chase
At length, most unwillingly, Captain Askew told the men that he should return into the Tower.
Washed Ashore
W.H.G. Kingston

British Dictionary definitions for askew

askew

adverb, adjective

at an oblique angle; towards one side; awry

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

Word Origin and History for askew

adv.

1570s, of uncertain etymology; perhaps literally "on skew" (see skew), or from the Old Norse form, a ska. Earlier askoye is attested in the same sense (early 15c.).