skate

[ skeyt ]

/ skeɪt /

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See synonyms for: skate / skating on Thesaurus.com

noun

ice skate (def. 1).

roller skate.

the blade of an ice skate.

a skid on a lifeboat to facilitate launching from a listing ship.

verb (used without object), skat·ed, skat·ing.

to glide or propel oneself over ice, the ground, etc., on skates.

to glide or slide smoothly along.

Slang. to shirk one's duty; loaf.

(of the tone arm on a record player) to swing toward the spindle while a record is playing.

verb (used with object), skat·ed, skat·ing.

to slide (a flat) across the floor of a stage.

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Idioms for skate

get / put one's skates on, British Informal. to make haste.

skate on thin ice, to be or place oneself in a risky or delicate situation: Taking a public stand on the question would be skating on thin ice.

Origin of skate

First recorded in 1640–50; originally plural scates, from Dutch schaats (singular) “skate,” Middle Dutch schaetse “stilt” (compare Medieval Latin scatia ), of unknown origin

OTHER WORDS FROM skate

skate·a·ble, adjective

Words nearby skate

skanky-ho, Skara Brae, skarn, Skase, skat, skate, skateboard, skateboarding, skatemobile, skate over, skatepark

Definition for skate (2 of 3)

skate²

[ skeyt ]

/ skeɪt /

noun, plural (especially collectively) skate, (especially referring to two or more kinds or species) skates.

any of several rays of the genus Raja, usually having a pointed snout, as R. binoculata(big skate ), inhabiting waters along the Pacific coast of the United States, growing to a length of 8 feet (2.4 meters).

Origin of skate

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English scate, from Old Norse skata

Definition for skate (3 of 3)

skate³

[ skeyt ]

/ skeɪt /

noun Slang.

a person; fellow: He's a good skate.

a contemptible person.

an inferior, decrepit horse; nag.

Origin of skate

First recorded in 1890–95; perhaps special use of skate²

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for skate

No matter what you intend to do once you’re on the ice, there is a skate to suit your needs.
Best ice skates: Stay comfortable and in control on the ice|PopSci Commerce Team|March 4, 2021|Popular Science
The easiest way to measure your foot in order to find the right size skate is to use a blank piece of paper, a hard surface, and either a soft bit of measuring tape or a string.
Best ice skates: Stay comfortable and in control on the ice|PopSci Commerce Team|March 4, 2021|Popular Science
As the activity itself has changed and matured, so have the skates themselves.
Best ice skates: Stay comfortable and in control on the ice|PopSci Commerce Team|March 4, 2021|Popular Science
They are just what you’re looking for—great-looking skates with high-performance construction.
Best ice skates: Stay comfortable and in control on the ice|PopSci Commerce Team|March 4, 2021|Popular Science

He was on the ice in a noncontact jersey before the morning skate Saturday.
Alex Ovechkin, Dmitry Orlov cleared to play for Caps; Evgeny Kuznetsov, Ilya Samsonov remain out|Samantha Pell|January 30, 2021|Washington Post
Yeah, he wanted to skate and had never skated before, so I taught him when he was 58.
Putin’s Hockey Pal Tells All: Slava Fetisov on ‘Red Army,’ Soviet Nostalgia, and What Drives Putin|Marlow Stern|October 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I also figure-skated competitively for about 10 years—I got to figure-skate in the show during the pageant!
‘Orange Is the New Black’ Star Uzo Aduba on Her Journey From Track Phenom to Crazy Eyes|Marlow Stern|June 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We'd skate and walk over the Mile Road and skate and walk over the railroad and skate some more.
Gordie Howe Hockey’s Greatest War Horse|W.C. Heinz|May 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
My sister Edna took one skate and I took the other, and I was so small that I put I it on right over my shoe.
Gordie Howe Hockey’s Greatest War Horse|W.C. Heinz|May 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Next he laced on first the right skate, with a pad of cotton under the tongue, and then the left.
Gordie Howe Hockey’s Greatest War Horse|W.C. Heinz|May 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I bet a feller can skate in the streeton the sidewalkalmost anywhere this morning, declared Chet, with enthusiasm.
The Girls of Central High on the Stage|Gertrude W. Morrison
The one shown was pivoted to a roller-skate wheel which in turn was fastened to a metal standard.
The Boy Mechanic, Book 2|Various
The beam was attached to the skate wheel with two small bolts which were insulated and carried two brushes as commutator contacts.
The Boy Mechanic, Book 2|Various
The laugh is still, the noise has fled, and the first sound of the skate on the black ice seems almost a desecration.
The Hills and the Vale|Richard Jefferies
The slope of the bank must be descended sideways—avoid the stones concealed by snow, for they will destroy the edge of the skate.
The Hills and the Vale|Richard Jefferies

British Dictionary definitions for skate (1 of 3)

skate¹

/ (skeɪt) /

noun

See roller skate, ice skate

the steel blade or runner of an ice skate

such a blade fitted with straps for fastening to a shoe

a current collector on an electric railway train that collects its current from a third railCompare bow collector

get one's skates on to hurry

verb (intr)

to glide swiftly on skates

to slide smoothly over a surface

skate on thin ice to place oneself in a dangerous or delicate situation

Word Origin for skate

C17: via Dutch from Old French éschasse stilt, probably of Germanic origin

British Dictionary definitions for skate (2 of 3)

skate²

/ (skeɪt) /

noun plural skate or skates

any large ray of the family Rajidae, of temperate and tropical seas, having flat pectoral fins continuous with the head, two dorsal fins, a short spineless tail, and a long snout

Word Origin for skate

C14: from Old Norse skata

British Dictionary definitions for skate (3 of 3)

skate³

/ (skeɪt) /

noun

US slang a person; fellow

Word Origin for skate

from Scottish and northern English dialect skate, a derogatory term of uncertain origin

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

Idioms and Phrases with skate

skate

In addition to the idiom beginning with skate

skate over

also see:

cheap skate
on thin ice, skate

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skate

noun

verb (used without object), skat·ed, skat·ing.

verb (used with object), skat·ed, skat·ing.