skiffle

¹

[ skif-uhl ]

verb (used with object)

, skif·fled, skif·fling.

1. knob ( def 7 ).

skiffle

²

[ skif-uhl ]

noun

1. a jazz style of the 1920s deriving from blues, ragtime, and folk music, played by bands made up of both standard and improvised instruments.
2. a style of popular music developed in England during the 1950s, deriving from hillbilly music and rock-'n'-roll, and played on a heterogeneous group of instruments, as guitar, washboard, ceramic jug, washtub, and kazoo.

skiffle

¹

/ ˈskɪfəl /

noun

1. dialect.
   a drizzle

   a skiffle of rain

skiffle

²

/ ˈskɪfəl /

noun

1. a style of popular music of the 1950s, played chiefly on guitars and improvised percussion instruments

Word History and Origins

Origin of skiffle¹

Perhaps akin to scabble

Origin of skiffle²

First recorded in 1920–25; origin uncertain

Word History and Origins

Origin of skiffle¹

from Scottish skiff, from skiff to move lightly, probably changed from skift, from Old Norse skipta shift

Origin of skiffle²

C20: of unknown origin

Example Sentences

In a recent piece, “Skiffle,” 2023, a poster depicts followers of the Jamaican political activist Marcus Garvey, who aspired to unify people of African descent worldwide.

From New York Times

Over time, his relationship with the subject matter has become more about the sociopolitical context of the shops and the details of the interiors, like in 2023’s “Skiffle.”

From New York Times

Already playing the proto-rock of skiffle, Nash skipped school to score tickets to see Bill Haley & His Comets with Clarke, days after his 15th birthday.

From New York Times

It soon became a favorite in the British folk-music scene and a radio hit; it even made it into the repertoire of Liverpool skiffle band, the Quarrymen, sung by a teenage John Lennon.

From Washington Post

Krauss: I love Fairport Convention and skiffle and all the things that came from that.

From Los Angeles Times