skinner

¹ American  

[skin-er] / ˈskɪn ər /

noun

1. a person or thing that skins.

2. a person who prepares or deals in skins or hides.

3. a person who drives draft animals, as mules or oxen.

4. the operator of a piece of heavy equipment used in clearing land or in construction work, as a tractor or bulldozer.

5. any of a band of irregular cavalry operating in the neutral ground of Westchester County, New York, during the American Revolution and claiming loyalty to both the British and American troops but preying on all persons indiscriminately.

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Skinner ² American  

[skin-er] / ˈskɪn ər /

noun

1. B(urrhus) F(rederic) 1904–90, U.S. psychologist and writer.

2. Cornelia Otis, 1901–79, U.S. actress and author.

3. her father Otis, 1858–1942, U.S. actor.

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Skinner ¹ British  

/ ˈskɪnə /

noun

1. B ( urrhus ) F ( rederic ). 1904–90, US behavioural psychologist. His "laws of learning", derived from experiments with animals, have been widely applied to education and behaviour therapy

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skinner ² British  

/ ˈskɪnə /

noun

1. a person who prepares or deals in animal skins

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Etymology

Origin of skinner

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; skin, -er ¹

Example Sentences

Twan was bony, even skinner than I was, so skinny he didn't have shoulders.

From Salon • Jun. 11, 2022

Dale Firm, a 57-year-old fish skinner for Campo, said he likely faces a future of welfare and food stamps if the bills pass.

From Washington Times • Feb. 21, 2020

He worked as a “lumper,” bringing boxes of fish from the boats, then as a journeyman, wheeling them to the loading zones, then as a skinner, a cutter, a salesman, and, finally, a buyer.

From The New Yorker • Aug. 1, 2019

He once successfully administered antivenin to a skinner who had been bitten by a snake, he wrote in a column for Sports Afield, and soldered a leaking radiator on a baggage truck.

From Washington Post • Jan. 22, 2018

The skinner had been studying the old dog with his calm eyes.

From "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck