Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

skid row

/ˌskɪd ˈɹoʊ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.26 in modern English

Syllables
skid row
IPA
/ˌskɪd ˈɹoʊ/
15
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
1
Syllables
7
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An especially dilapidated section of a city, characterized by abandoned or run-down buildings and vices such as drug dealing and prostitution, and frequented by homeless people.

Canadian usage; American usage; Countable; Derogatory; Informal; Uncountable

noun

A situation of great desperation or misfortune.

Canadian usage; American usage; Countable; Informal; Uncountable

noun

Alternative letter-case form of skid row.

name

Several neighborhoods in the United States and Canada associated with crime, homelessness or the lumber industry:

name

Several neighborhoods in the United States and Canada associated with crime, homelessness or the lumber industry:

name

Several neighborhoods in the United States and Canada associated with crime, homelessness or the lumber industry:

name

Several neighborhoods in the United States and Canada associated with crime, homelessness or the lumber industry:

name

Several neighborhoods in the United States and Canada associated with crime, homelessness or the lumber industry:

Etymology

An alteration of skid road (“road along which logs are dragged or skidded; (Canada, US, informal) downtown streets where loggers go for recreation on their time off”). In 1852, skid road was first applied to a slum area at the loggers’ part of town in Seattle, Washington, USA, and before 1900 it had come into common usage in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Over time, the variant skid row came to refer to a district or slum frequented by alcoholics and hobos, even in areas without a lumber industry.

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˌskɪd ˈɹoʊ/
  • British English: /ˌskɪd ˈɹəʊ/

Usage

Inflected Forms

skid rows (plural) skidrow (alternative)

Derived Forms

Skidrokyo

Phrases

hit the skids on the skids shanty town

Frequently Paired Words

hit the skids on the skids banlieue ghetto shanty town

Synonyms

favela skid road

Rhymes With

to so do no so-so know go show though as though oh ago

Questions

How do you pronounce skid row?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˌskɪd ˈɹoʊ/.
What does skid row mean?
An especially dilapidated section of a city, characterized by abandoned or run-down buildings and vices such as drug dealing and prostitution, and frequented by homeless people.
Where does skid row come from?
An alteration of skid road (“road along which logs are dragged or skidded; (Canada, US, informal) downtown streets where loggers go for recreation on their time off”). In 1852, skid road was first applied to a slum area at the loggers’ part of town in Seattle, Washington, USA, and before 1900 it had come into common usage in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Over time, the variant skid row came to refer to a district or slum frequented by alcoholics and hobos, even in areas without a lumber industry.

How to pronounce skid row

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