skip
skip — verb
1. to walk with small, quick, bouncing steps, usually because you feel happy or exc
to walk with small, quick, bouncing steps, usually because you feel happy or excited.
Daichi skipped happily down the street after hearing the good news.
skip + adverb/preposition (down)
The little girl held her mother's hand and skipped along the path to the park.
Léa skipped over the puddles on her way to school.
skip + over (obstacle)
The puppy skipped across the grass, chasing after a butterfly.
- skip along
- skip down
- skip over
- skip across
- trudge
walk slowly with heavy steps
Grammar Patterns
skip + adverb/preposition (along, down, over)
Usage Note
Commonly describes children or people in a cheerful mood. Frequently takes a direction or location phrase (down, along, over, across).
Common Mistakes
2. to take part in an activity where a rope is swung around your body and you jump
to take part in an activity where a rope is swung around your body and you jump as it passes beneath you, done as a game or for fitness.
Selim skips for twenty minutes every morning to stay fit.
The children were skipping in the playground during their break.
used as continuous form for an activity in progress
Nala learnt to skip when she was five years old.
A group of kids were skipping in the park after school.
- skip for exercise
- skip in the playground
- learn to skip
- jump rope
standard American English term for the activity
Grammar Patterns
skip (as an activity, no object)
Usage Note
In British English, this is the usual word for jumping over a rope as exercise. In American English, 'jump rope' is more common, and 'skip' for this sense is rarer.
Common Mistakes
3. to cause a rope to swing over your head and under your feet repeatedly by jumpin
to cause a rope to swing over your head and under your feet repeatedly by jumping over it.
Mauricio skipped rope for ten minutes without once getting tangled.
skip + rope as direct object
The coach asked the team to skip rope as part of their warm-up routine.
Devika can skip rope faster than anyone in her class.
Children took turns skipping a long rope turned by two friends.
skip a long rope — rope as object with modifier
- skip rope
- skip a rope
Grammar Patterns
skip + rope
Usage Note
This transitive use ('skip rope') puts the rope as the object. In everyday British English, 'skip' without an object (sense 2) is far more common.
Common Mistakes
4. to depart from somewhere in a hurry or without being noticed, usually to avoid a
to depart from somewhere in a hurry or without being noticed, usually to avoid a duty or difficulty.
The tenants skipped town without paying the last month's rent.
skip + town (fixed collocation)
After the fight broke out, the teenagers skipped the bar before the police arrived.
Devika skipped out on her flatmates, leaving them to pay the bills alone.
skip out on + person/obligation
The singer skipped the country after the scandal broke.
skip + the country (fixed collocation)
- skip town
- skip the country
- skip out on
- skip class
Grammar Patterns
skip + town/city/country
skip out on + person/obligation
Usage Note
Strongly informal. Most common in fixed phrases like 'skip town', 'skip the country', or 'skip out on someone'. Often implies avoiding a debt or responsibility.
Common Mistakes
❌ 'He skipped the meeting.' (when meaning he simply didn't attend) — Use sense 5 (OMIT OR AVOID) instead. Sense 4 implies leaving somewhere with an element of secrecy or escape.
5. to decide not to do, have, or include something that you would normally do or th
to decide not to do, have, or include something that you would normally do or that is expected.
Rachel skipped breakfast because she was late for work.
skip + noun (a meal)
You can skip the first chapter if you already know the basics.
Sivan skipped going to the gym this morning because she felt tired.
skip + -ing form
The teacher skipped over the less important details to save time.
skip over + noun (to bypass parts of content)
- skip breakfast/lunch/dinner
- skip class/school
- skip a step
- skip a chapter
- skip over
Grammar Patterns
skip + noun
skip + -ing verb
skip + over (intransitive)
Usage Note
The most frequent sense of 'skip'. The object can be a meal, a class, a meeting, a step in a process, or a portion of content. Intransitive use 'skip over' means to bypass parts of something you are reading or listening to.
Common Mistakes
6. when you throw a flat, smooth pebble across water, making it bounce many times o
when you throw a flat, smooth pebble across water, making it bounce many times on the top before it goes under.
Daichi and his brother spent the afternoon skipping stones across the lake.
skip + stone + across + body of water
Lien tried to skip a flat pebble across the pond, but it sank at once.
Can you teach me how to skip stones like that?
Jenna found a perfect flat pebble and skipped it across the river eight times.
skip + across + count of bounces
- skip stones
- skip a stone across
- go skipping stones
- skip pebbles
- skim
less common; same activity but can also describe movement of birds or aircraft over water
Grammar Patterns
skip + stone + across/over + water
go skipping stones
Usage Note
Also called 'ducks and drakes' in British English. The flatness of the stone and the angle of the throw are what make the stone bounce.
Common Mistakes
skip out (on)
phrasal verbto leave someone or something suddenly, especially to avoid paying a debt or facing a responsibility.
The couple skipped out on their hotel bill in the middle of the night.
Mauricio skipped out of the meeting before anyone could ask him questions.
skip off
phrasal verbto leave a place quietly or suddenly, often without telling anyone.
Selim skipped off early, saying he had a headache.
The dog skipped off through the gate when nobody was looking.
skip out
phrasal verbThis means to leave a place quickly and secretly, often to avoid paying or doing something.
The diner skipped out without paying the bill.
Why did you skip out on the meeting early?
skip out on
phrasal verbThis means to leave someone or something that you are responsible for, often without telling anyone.
He skipped out on his rent and moved away.
Sara skipped out on her friends during the trip.
skip it
idiomused to tell someone rudely that you do not want to talk about something any more, or that you will not repeat what you have just said.
Jenna started to explain, then sighed and said, "Oh, skip it — it doesn't matter."
"What did you just say?" "Skip it. I shouldn't have brought it up."
skip bail
idiomto not appear at your court trial after you have paid money to be released from prison until the trial date.
The suspect skipped bail and has not been seen since.
If you skip bail, the court keeps the money you paid and issues a warrant for your arrest.
a phrase used to describe a sudden strong feeling of excitement, surprise, or fear that makes your heart seem to pause or jump for a moment.
When Dahlia saw the ring, her heart skipped a beat.
My heart skipped a beat when I heard the crash from the next room.
This means someone suddenly feels very surprised, excited, or frightened.
Maya's heart skipped a beat when she saw the test results.
Did your heart miss a beat when the car almost hit you?
jump/skip bail
idiomThis means to not appear in court for a trial after paying money to be released before the trial.
The suspect skipped bail and fled to another country.
If you jump bail, the court will keep your money.
skip — noun
1. a large, strong metal container that a truck brings to a building site or home s
a large, strong metal container that a truck brings to a building site or home so that people can fill it with unwanted rubbish, old furniture, or building materials and have it taken away.
The builders hired a skip to get rid of all the rubble from the renovation.
A skip full of broken bricks and old pipes sits outside the house next door.
a skip full of + noun
We ordered a skip to clear out the garage before moving house.
Neighbours complained about the skip blocking the narrow street for days.
- hire a skip
- skip lorry
- fill a skip
- skip full of
- dumpster
American English equivalent; usually larger and enclosed
- rubbish bin
much smaller, for household use
Grammar Patterns
a skip
skip + full of + noun
Usage Note
Chiefly British. In American English, the equivalent is a 'dumpster' (a trademark name that is used generically). Skips are open-topped and delivered by special trucks called 'skip lorries'.
Common Mistakes
❌ 'I put the bag in the skip.' (if the reader is American) — American readers would not understand 'skip' as a container; use 'dumpster' for US context.
2. a quick, light jumping movement made by stepping and then hopping with the same
a quick, light jumping movement made by stepping and then hopping with the same foot, especially as part of dancing or walking playfully.
Lien crossed the room with a little skip in her step.
with a skip in [possessive] step
The dance routine included two skips followed by a turn.
The children added a skip to their walk as they grew more excited.
a skip as part of a movement pattern
Baraka performed a quick skip before leaping into the air.
- a skip in her step
- with a skip
- skip and hop
Grammar Patterns
a skip
with a skip
Usage Note
Often appears in the fixed phrase 'a skip in one's step' to describe a cheerful or energetic mood. As a dance step, it is a basic element in many folk and ballet movements.
3. someone who has vanished or run off, typically because they owe money or want to
someone who has vanished or run off, typically because they owe money or want to stay out of legal trouble.
A landlord hired a private detective to track a skip who owed months of rent.
The company tracks down skips — people who have moved without paying their debts.
commonly used in plural to refer to debtors who disappear
The police issued a warrant for the skip, who had vanished without any warning.
Insurance firms hire agents to locate skips who have changed their names.
- find a skip
- track down skips
Grammar Patterns
a skip
Usage Note
Informal and specialised. Most often heard in the context of debt collection or insurance investigation. Not used in general conversation.
4. the person who leads a team in sports like curling and bowls, choosing which sho
the person who leads a team in sports like curling and bowls, choosing which shots the team should play.
The skip decided which stone to aim for and called out instructions to the team.
As skip, Lien was responsible for the team's strategy during the championship match.
as skip — role description
Dahlia was chosen as the new skip because of her calm leadership on the ice.
The skip raised a broom to show the team exactly where to aim.
concrete action associated with the role
- the skip
- play skip
- as skip
Grammar Patterns
the skip
skip of + team/club
Usage Note
This is the traditional term for the captain or team leader in curling and lawn bowls. In curling, the skip stands at the far end of the ice and directs the players who slide the stones.
Word family
- skippingnounB1
- skipping ropenounA2
- skippedadjectiveB1
Synonym discussion
Sense: verb/5
All four words describe not doing or not including something, but they differ in formality and implication. 'Skip' (B1, informal to neutral) is the most versatile and common in everyday speech — you skip breakfast, skip a meeting, or skip a chapter; it always implies a deliberate choice. 'Omit' (B2, formal) is the best choice for writing and official contexts: 'The editor omitted the final paragraph from the article.' 'Miss' (A2, neutral) can be either deliberate or accidental: 'I missed the bus' (unintentional) versus 'I missed the party' (could be either). 'Bypass' (B2, semi-formal) suggests going around an obstacle rather than simply leaving something out: 'The new road bypasses the town centre.' In practice, for the core meaning of deliberately choosing not to do something you normally do, 'skip' is the natural choice in conversation, while 'omit' belongs in formal writing.
Common collocations
Etymology
The word 'skip' comes from Old Norse 'skopa' meaning 'to run, leap', which entered Middle English as 'skippen' in the 13th century. The original meaning was 'to jump or leap lightly'. From this core idea, the various modern senses diverged: the 'move lightly' sense stayed closest to the original; the 'jump rope' sense emerged by the 18th century; the 'omit or bypass' meaning developed in the 16th century, treating the skipped item as something one 'leaps over' figuratively; and the 'leave quickly' sense grew out of the idea of 'skipping town' — leaping away from a place. The noun sense 'large waste container' is unrelated — it comes from 19th-century English dialect 'skip' meaning 'a basket', from Old English 'cep' (a basket or bin).