skittle

[ skit-l ]

/ ˈskɪt l /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR skittle ON THESAURUS.COM

noun Chiefly British.

skittles, (used with a singular verb) ninepins in which a wooden ball or disk is used to knock down the pins.

one of the pins used in this game.

RELATED WORDS

ninepins, candlepins, kegling

Nearby words

skite, skitter, skittery, skittish, skittishly, skittle, skittle out, skittles, skive, skiver, skivvies

Origin of skittle

1625–35; perhaps < Scandinavian; compare Old Norse skutill shuttle, arrow; Danish skyttel shuttle

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for skittles

When a deal is about to close at work, is there always a bag of Skittles within reach?
Can This Mood-Sensing Bra Curb Overeating?|Lori-Lee Emshey|December 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
And when I passed the refreshment stand on the way out of the theater, I could not help but think of Skittles.
Hollywood, Shootings, and ‘2 Guns’: When Is Stylized Violence Obscene?|Michael Daly|July 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Martin had just taken a trip to a convenience store for a bag of Skittles candy and a can of drink.
Zimmerman Trial Gets Punked—and ‘Stand Your Ground’ Takes Center Stage|Jacqui Goddard|July 3, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In the evening, he left to walk less than a mile to the 7-Eleven to get a can of soda and a bag of Skittles for Chad.
George Zimmerman Trial, Day One: ‘F--king Punks’|Jacqui Goddard|June 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST

Skittles fly up behind him, a reminder of the reason Martin went to the store that night.
Trayvon Martin: Painted by Chaz Guest (PHOTOS)|Isabel Wilkinson|April 13, 2012|DAILY BEAST
There is even epicurean asceticism, which asserts that beer and skittles are alone satisfying.
Twelve Types|G.K. Chesterton
But it is not to be concluded that it is all beer and skittles for Eve.
Mobilizing Woman-Power|Harriot Stanton Blatch
The President says, "he doesn't know anything about that," and looks a little surprised, as if I had proposed a game of skittles.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 99, August 30, 1890.|Various
I rammed in, windmillin' all round and knocking 'em down like skittles.
Tales of Chinatown|Sax Rohmer
The costermongers boast of their skill in pugilism as well as at skittles.
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, No. XI.--April, 1851--Vol. II.|Various

British Dictionary definitions for skittles

skittle

/ (ˈskɪtəl) /

noun

a wooden or plastic pin, typically widest just above the base

Also called (esp US): ninepins (plural; functioning as singular) a bowling game in which players knock over as many skittles as possible by rolling a wooden ball at them

beer and skittles (often used with a negative) informal an easy time; amusement

Word Origin for skittle

C17: of obscure origin; perhaps related to Swedish, Danish skyttel shuttle

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 skittles

skittles

game played with nine pins, 1630s, plural of skittle, the word for the pins used in the game, probably from a Scandinavian source (cf. Danish and Norwegian skyttel "shuttle, child's toy"). But OED says there is no evidence of a connection.