skate
1 Americannoun
-
the blade of an ice skate.
-
a skid on a lifeboat to facilitate launching from a listing ship.
verb (used without object)
-
skates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
skated,
past participle, past
-
skating
present participle
-
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)
-
skates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
skated,
past participle, past
-
skating
present participle
idioms
-
get / put one's skates on, 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.
noun
-
skate,
plural
-
skates
plural
noun
-
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 rail Compare bow collector
-
to hurry
verb
-
to glide swiftly on skates
-
to slide smoothly over a surface
-
to place oneself in a dangerous or delicate situation
noun
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
skatesimple
-
skatessimple
-
have skatedperfect
-
has skatedperfect
-
am skatingprogressive
-
are skatingprogressive
-
is skatingprogressive
-
have been skatingperfect progressive
-
has been skatingperfect progressive
Past
-
skatedsimple
-
had skatedperfect
-
was skatingprogressive
-
were skatingprogressive
-
had been skatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of skate1
First recorded in 1640–50; originally plural scates, from Dutch schaats (singular) “skate,” Middle Dutch schaetse “stilt” (compare Medieval Latin scatia ), of unknown origin
Origin of skate2
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English scate, from Old Norse skata
Origin of skate3
First recorded in 1890–95; perhaps special use of skate 2
Explanation
Skates are things you wear on your feet so you can roll around a roller rink or glide across an icy pond. Roller skates have wheels on the bottom, and ice skates have metal blades. When you lace up your skates and start moving over the ice, you skate. You also skate when you head down the street to your friend's house on your skates—or on your skateboard. A totally different kind of skate is the sea creature that looks like a sting ray, with a wide, flat body. The sporting equipment kind of skate comes from a Germanic root meaning "thing that shakes or moves fast."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He founded his first company, Westbeach Snowboard, in 1979, to sell surf, skate and snowboard gear.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
Other tour boats skate around the limestone coast fringed with wind-blasted greenery.
From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026
You may have seen Elsesser’s face staring back in brand campaigns for everyone from Calvin Klein to Tommy Hilfiger or bought his signature line of Converse skate shoes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
Most accounts of the American Revolution skate right over the ill-fated invasion of Quebec in 1775, months before the Declaration of Independence.
From Salon ● Aug. 31, 2026
The newly paved walks were bumpy and uncomfortable, and the sound of skate wheels on new walks was grating.
From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison
Head coach of the Steel Queens' elite squad, Beth Dias-Scoon, swapped roller blades for ice skates at the age of seven.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026
In the basement: what I believe are my first pair of hockey skates, a broken papier-mâché Groucho Marx puppet, and a Green Bay Packers helmet I hand-painted in fourth grade.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
In addition to those quirky flavor names like Smokey Dokey and Here Comes Truffle, it was selling holographic roller skates and being pen pals with fans.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026
Under the California Vehicle Code, it is illegal for anyone on an e-bike, bicycle, motorcycle or roller skates to attach themselves to another vehicle on a road.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
“I’ll wear mine,” John told the salesman, a tiny round bald man with spectacles which quickly dropped to the end of his nose as he laced up the skates.
From "The Pigman" by Paul Zindel
Kate said she was unhappy with the response and felt the health board "skated over" the issues, adding that doctors should have "realised sooner that it wasn't just a skin condition".
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
Pro 7, which ran an advertising campaign in which their mascot held an Olympic flame or curled, skated or bob-sledded down a supermarket aisle, was fined a total of 550,000 euros.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
After crumpling to the ice, McNabb immediately climbed to his feet, skated off the playing area and headed down the tunnel while holding a hand over his nose and mouth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
Then the game started—and the U.S. skated into a new era of American hockey.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 22, 2026
We skated for a moment without talking, the polka music oompahing along.
From "The Lions of Little Rock" by Kristin Levine
Some buildings are still closed, but many have been renovated or reimagined, like one damaged structure that has been turned into an outdoor skating rink.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026
In warmer weather, you can rent kayaks, wave runners and paddleboards or take a seasonal cruise aboard the Lake Lawn Queen; winter brings cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, ice skating, ice fishing and sledding.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026
"I always want to challenge myself in new ways, so my artistry & skating can evolve. It's important to me that my sport reflects my personal growth," she wrote on Instagram.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
She returned to skating in 2024 on her own terms, with a new look that included a halo hairstyle and a “smiley” piercing in the tissue connecting her upper lip to her gums.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
“Maybe you will. If we have to run, maybe we’ll all be skating the ocean.”
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
