skulk
Americanverb (used without object)
noun
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a person who skulks.
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a pack or group of foxes.
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Rare. an act or instance of skulking.
verb
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to move stealthily so as to avoid notice
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to lie in hiding; lurk
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to shirk duty or evade responsibilities; malinger
noun
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a person who skulks
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obsolete a pack of foxes or other animals that creep about stealthily
Synonym Usage
See lurk.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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skulksimple
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skulkssimple
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have skulkedperfect
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has skulkedperfect
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am skulkingprogressive
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are skulkingprogressive
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is skulkingprogressive
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have been skulkingperfect progressive
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has been skulkingperfect progressive
Past
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skulkedsimple
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had skulkedperfect
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was skulkingprogressive
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were skulkingprogressive
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had been skulkingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of skulk
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English, from Scandinavian (not in Old Norse ); compare Danish, Norwegian skulke, Swedish skolka “to play hooky”
Explanation
Skulking is cowardly. It means hiding out, either because you're trying to pull something off in secret, or because you're trying to get out of doing something you're supposed to be doing. If you cut school, it makes sense to do it in the style of Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and enjoy yourself. Will the punishment be worse than if you skulk around town, avoiding teachers and people your parents know, not doing anything you really want to do? In spy movies, there are always bad guys in hotel lobbies, skulking about, hiding behind open newspapers.
Vocabulary lists containing skulk
Animal Farm
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Beowulf
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"The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
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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:
I’ve seen too many protagonists skulk down dark hallways, but McCarthy’s version of that shot is so visceral that you feel like he’s really been there.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026
You could skulk back to the Other Place.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 29, 2024
It’s a classic safari moment: A lion stands over a fresh carcass while hyenas skulk at the periphery, heads low.
From National Geographic ● Feb. 8, 2024
She has to do her work at night and skulk around in the darkness.
From Salon ● Oct. 14, 2023
The memory tried to skulk into my head, but with Anna May beside me, I easily pushed it out.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
The lens skulks like a voyeur and does what it can to frazzle us, too.
From New York Times ● May 5, 2022
Trey skulks around Cal, alternately spying on him and helping him with the house, then hounds him into searching for the boy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2020
A loaded orphan who lives in a giant keep above a mining town, Robin spends his time dressing up as a thief and perfecting his “Assassin’s Creed” cosplay as he skulks around the local barns.
From Salon ● Nov. 23, 2018
On the other hand, once Sessions skulks back to Alabama, Kate McKinnon will have no further reason to play him on Saturday Night Live, which will probably be good for his reputation.
From Slate ● Nov. 11, 2018
He skulks out, hands tucked under his armpits.
From "The Last Cuentista" by Donna Barba Higuera
Defector Brooks Koepka skulked back to the PGA Tour, accepting penalties for going astray.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026
They were MTV staples for grimy videos like “Breathe” and “Firestarter,” where the dual-mohawked singer/dancer Keith Flint skulked around an empty subway tunnel, sneering in kohl eyeliner and an American flag sweater.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2025
Unlike earlier generations of royals who skulked in and out of the hospital alone, Charles left his recent treatment with Camilla by his side, providing the support most people would expect from their spouses.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 14, 2024
At Other, though, I skulked, soaking up the sounds but keeping resolutely shtum, staying for ages then leaving with just freesheets and flyers, usually.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 26, 2020
Whether Richard Parker skulked up in masterly tiger fashion before landing upon them in a thunder of roaring, or slouched by indifferently, it was all the same to them.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
It helped shift my attention to the supporting cast: Shioli Kutsuna and Aoi Yamada make a playful tag team as two slippery helpers skulking around the margins.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
The main way I die is at the hands of the simulated antagonist, who is skulking somewhere in the ductwork.
From Slate ● Apr. 29, 2023
The ending is a page turner as Wels describes Garfield’s last days alive, oblivious to Guiteau skulking in the shadows.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 2, 2023
Without looking too hard we spotted white-tailed deer behind the trees, bright red cardinals flitting about and even a gray fox skulking by.
From New York Times ● Sep. 7, 2022
Ralph was tired of skulking about, hiding in mittens and boots, scrounging glue-flavored seeds from fourth-grade mosaics, and eating sugar, which he had overheard children say rotted teeth.
From "Ralph S. Mouse" by Beverly Cleary
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
