skitter

[ skit-er ]
See synonyms for: skitterskitteredskittering on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)
  1. to go, run, or glide lightly or rapidly.

  2. to skim along a surface.

  1. Angling. to draw a lure or a baited hook over the water with a skipping motion.

verb (used with object)
  1. to cause to skitter.

Origin of skitter

1
1835–45; skit, variant of skite1 + -er6

Words Nearby skitter

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use skitter in a sentence

  • Moving another notch down caused the picture to skitter back and forth on the screen.

    The Time Traders | Andre Norton
  • When you quit skitter Bend, like the whipped cur you wus, I wus right hot on your trail.

    The Night Riders | Ridgwell Cullum
  • We saw the ruffled grouse whir through the thickets and the wild ducks skitter down the stream ahead of us.

    Days Off | Henry Van Dyke
  • He divided with me, told me to fasten one upon the end of my line and skitter it over the water.

  • skitter and spit dust—use it all, but keep us clear for three minutes!

    The Butterfly Kiss | Arthur Dekker Savage

British Dictionary definitions for skitter

skitter

/ (ˈskɪtə) /


verb
  1. (intr often foll by off) to move or run rapidly or lightly; scamper

  2. to skim or cause to skim lightly and rapidly, as across the surface of water

  1. (intr) angling to draw a bait lightly over the surface of water

Origin of skitter

1
C19: probably from dialect skite to dash about; related to Old Norse skjōta to shoot

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