Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

skim

/skɪm/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.17 in modern English

Syllables
skim
IPA
/skɪm/
10
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To pass lightly; to glide along in an even, smooth course; to glide along near the surface.

Intransitive verb

verb

To pass near the surface of; to brush the surface of; to glide swiftly along the surface of.

Transitive verb

verb

To hasten along with superficial attention.

verb

To put on a finishing coat of plaster.

verb

To throw an object so it bounces on water.

Transitive verb

verb

To ricochet.

Intransitive verb

verb

To read quickly or describe summarily, skipping some detail.

Transitive verb

verb

To scrape off; to remove (something) from a surface

Transitive verb

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Middle English skemen, skymen, variants of scumen, from Old French escumer (“to remove scum”), from escume (“froth, foam”), from Frankish *skūm (“froth, foam”), from Proto-Germanic *skūmaz (“foam”), from Proto-Indo-European *skew- (“to cover, conceal”). See scum.

Origin

Word Breakdown

  • Root: skemen, escumer, *skūm, *skūmaz, *skew-

Usage

Inflected Forms

skims (present, singular) skimming (participle, present) skimmed (participle, past) skimmed (past) skims (plural)

Derived Forms

overskim reskim skimboard skimboarding skimmability skimmable skimmer skimmy

Phrases

cream-skim semi-skimmed skimmed milk skim off skim over skim-read skim through skim milk

Synonyms

skip skimmed skimming skim over skim off cream off cream skitter

Rhymes With

him im jim kim tim gym swim slim trim rim sim limb

Questions

How do you pronounce skim?
The recorded pronunciation is /skɪm/.
What does skim mean?
To pass lightly; to glide along in an even, smooth course; to glide along near the surface.
Where does skim come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce skim

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “skim”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/skɪm/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “skim”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “skim” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.