skill
1 Americannoun
-
the ability, coming from one's knowledge, practice, aptitude, etc., to do something well.
Carpentry was one of his many skills.
- Synonyms:
- facility , proficiency
- Antonyms:
- inability
-
competent excellence in performance; expertness; dexterity.
The dancers performed with skill.
- Synonyms:
- cleverness , deftness
-
a craft, trade, or job requiring manual dexterity or special training in which a person has competence and experience.
the skill of cabinetmaking.
-
Obsolete. understanding; discernment.
-
Obsolete. reason; cause.
verb (used without object)
-
to matter.
-
to help; avail.
noun
-
special ability in a task, sport, etc, esp ability acquired by training
-
something, esp a trade or technique, requiring special training or manual proficiency
-
obsolete understanding
Other Word Forms
- skill-less adjective
Etymology
Origin of skill1
First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English, from Old Norse skil “distinction, difference”; cognate with Dutch geschil “difference, quarrel”; skill 2 ( def. )
Origin of skill1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English skilien, from Old Norse skilja “to distinguish, divide,” akin to skil ( skill 1 ( def. ) ), Old English scylian “to separate,” Gothic skilja “butcher,” Lithuanian skélti “to split”
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.
It faces other challenges, too, such as convincing potential users who have just learned one set of AI vocabulary and skills that they should adopt something new.
Members of the group spent six hours crafting each stocking, using hand embroidery, piping and seam-matching skills.
From BBC
Roughly one in eight freshmen lack rudimentary high-school math skills, defined as geometry, algebra and algebra 2.
This is Fruity Martini 2.0 — a renaissance built on nostalgia, but fortified with skill.
From Salon
Bonds was an all-action, versatile player who mixed remarkable fitness, a fiercely competitive nature and skill into a potent combination that was at the heart of everything he and West Ham did.
From BBC
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.
