skate
1the blade of an ice skate.
a skid on a lifeboat to facilitate launching from a listing ship.
to glide or propel oneself over ice, the ground, etc., on skates.
to glide or slide smoothly along.
Slang. to shirk one's duty; loaf.
(of the tone arm on a record player) to swing toward the spindle while a record is playing.
to slide (a flat) across the floor of a stage.
Idioms about skate
get / put one's skates on, British Informal. to make haste.
skate on thin ice, to be or place oneself in a risky or delicate situation: Taking a public stand on the question would be skating on thin ice.
Origin of skate
1Other words from skate
- skate·a·ble, adjective
Words Nearby skate
Other definitions for skate (2 of 3)
any of numerous rays of the family Rajidae having paired electric organs within a long, fleshy tail and producing a distinctive egg case (a mermaid's purse): a widespread group of more than 570 species, the largest being Beringraja binoculata(big skate ) of Pacific coastal waters from Alaska to Baja California, known to exceed 7.5 feet (2.3 meters) in length.
Origin of skate
2Other definitions for skate (3 of 3)
Origin of skate
3Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use skate in a sentence
Yoga helped my sore muscles recover, and watching skate videos kept me inspired.
I can’t even put words to the feeling of going to a skate park and just being one person.
I also like to roller skate, ride scooters, and ride my bike on my driveway and in the park.
'A Year Full of Emotions.' What Kids Learned From the COVID-19 Pandemic | Allison Singer | June 12, 2021 | TimeOshie missed the team’s morning skate Wednesday for undisclosed reasons, but he slotted in with no apparent minute restrictions.
Bruins seize upon Capitals’ gaffe behind the net, win Game 3 in double overtime | Samantha Pell | May 20, 2021 | Washington PostThe pandemic brought a flood of new kids to the skate park, including the Gilbert boys, and demand for lessons more than doubled, he says.
‘The pandemic trade-off’: Some parents are reassessing which kids’ activities feel safe | Hilary Potkewitz | April 16, 2021 | Washington Post
Yeah, he wanted to skate and had never skated before, so I taught him when he was 58.
Putin’s Hockey Pal Tells All: Slava Fetisov on ‘Red Army,’ Soviet Nostalgia, and What Drives Putin | Marlow Stern | October 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTI also figure-skated competitively for about 10 years—I got to figure-skate in the show during the pageant!
‘Orange Is the New Black’ Star Uzo Aduba on Her Journey From Track Phenom to Crazy Eyes | Marlow Stern | June 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWe'd skate and walk over the Mile Road and skate and walk over the railroad and skate some more.
My sister Edna took one skate and I took the other, and I was so small that I put I it on right over my shoe.
Next he laced on first the right skate, with a pad of cotton under the tongue, and then the left.
I bet a feller can skate in the streeton the sidewalkalmost anywhere this morning, declared Chet, with enthusiasm.
The Girls of Central High on the Stage | Gertrude W. MorrisonThe one shown was pivoted to a roller-skate wheel which in turn was fastened to a metal standard.
The Boy Mechanic, Book 2 | VariousThe beam was attached to the skate wheel with two small bolts which were insulated and carried two brushes as commutator contacts.
The Boy Mechanic, Book 2 | VariousThe laugh is still, the noise has fled, and the first sound of the skate on the black ice seems almost a desecration.
The Hills and the Vale | Richard JefferiesThe slope of the bank must be descended sideways—avoid the stones concealed by snow, for they will destroy the edge of the skate.
The Hills and the Vale | Richard Jefferies
British Dictionary definitions for skate (1 of 3)
/ (skeɪt) /
See roller skate, ice skate
the steel blade or runner of an ice skate
such a blade fitted with straps for fastening to a shoe
a current collector on an electric railway train that collects its current from a third rail: Compare bow collector
get one's skates on to hurry
to glide swiftly on skates
to slide smoothly over a surface
skate on thin ice to place oneself in a dangerous or delicate situation
Origin of skate
1British Dictionary definitions for skate (2 of 3)
/ (skeɪt) /
any large ray of the family Rajidae, of temperate and tropical seas, having flat pectoral fins continuous with the head, two dorsal fins, a short spineless tail, and a long snout
Origin of skate
2British Dictionary definitions for skate (3 of 3)
/ (skeɪt) /
US slang a person; fellow
Origin of skate
3Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with skate
In addition to the idiom beginning with skate
- skate over
also see:
- cheap skate
- on thin ice, skate
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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