skittle

[ skit-l ]

/ ˈskɪt l /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: skittles 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.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

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. 2023

How to use skittle in a sentence

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
Wonder whether my "Firmness" is as large as Professor Skittles declared.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 93, September 24, 1887|Various
These not being familiar military words of command, the men stuck there like skittles.
The Yeoman Adventurer|George W. Gough
Bowling and the game of skittles are also favourite pastimes, and to the latter especially several romantic stories attach.
Tyrol and its People|Clive Holland
The men laughed and fell in for their first march, when they began to realise that a soldier's life was not all beer and skittles.
Soldier Stories|Rudyard Kipling
It means that he is strong enough—but you think it skittles, Colonel Creighton—to make any one do anything he wants.
Kim|Rudyard Kipling

British Dictionary definitions for skittle

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

skittle

Origin of skittle

Words related to skittle

How to use skittle in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for skittle

Word Origin for skittle