selkie

[ sil-kee ]

/ ˈsɪl ki /

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noun Scot.

a mythical creature that looks like a seal in water but assumes human form on land.

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His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Sometimes sil·kie . Rarely seal·chie .

Origin of selkie

First recorded in 1685–95; Scots dialect (Orkney and Shetland Islands) variant of seal²

Words nearby selkie

self-winding, self-worth, self-wrong, Selihoth, Seljuk, selkie, Selkirk, Selkirk Mountains, Selkirk Rex, Selkirkshire, sell

How to use selkie in a sentence

In Shetland it is the “haff-fish,” or selkie, a fallen spirit.
Fictitious & Symbolic Creatures in Art|John Vinycomb
Within the last ten years a man pulled down and rebuilt his byre because of some 'ongoings with a selkie flipper.'
Social Origins and Primal Law|Andrew Lang

British Dictionary definitions for selkie

selkie

/ (ˈsɛlkɪ) /

noun

Scot a variant of silkie

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