/ skɪp; NAmE / verb , noun
■ verb
( -pp- )
MOVE WITH JUMPS
1.
[ v , usually + adv. / prep. ] to move forwards lightly and quickly making a little jump with each step :
She skipped happily along beside me.
JUMP OVER ROPE
2.
( BrE ) ( NAmE ˌjump ˈrope , ˌskip ˈrope ) to jump over a rope which is held at both ends by yourself or by two other people and is passed again and again over your head and under your feet :
[ v ]
The girls were skipping in the playground.
[ vn ]
She likes to skip rope as a warm-up.
NOT DO STH
3.
[ vn ] to not do sth that you usually do or should do :
I often skip breakfast altogether.
She decided to skip the afternoon's class.
4.
to leave out sth that would normally be the next thing that you would do, read, etc. :
[ vn ]
You can skip the next chapter if you have covered the topic in class.
[ v ]
I skipped over the last part of the book.
I suggest we skip to the last item on the agenda.
CHANGE QUICKLY
5.
[ v + adv. / prep. ] to move from one place to another or from one subject to another very quickly :
She kept skipping from one topic of conversation to another.
LEAVE SECRETLY
6.
[ vn ] to leave a place secretly or suddenly :
[ vn ]
The bombers skipped the country shortly after the blast.
STONES
7.
[ vn ] ( BrE also skim ) to make a flat stone jump across the surface of water :
The boys were skipping stones across the pond.
•
IDIOMS
- skip it
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- skip off / out
- skip out on sb
■ noun
MOVEMENT
1.
a skipping movement :
She gave a skip and a jump and was off down the street.
CONTAINER FOR WASTE
2.
( BrE ) ( NAmE Dumpster ™) a large open container for putting old bricks, rubbish / garbage, etc. in. The skip is then loaded on a lorry / truck and taken away.
••
WORD ORIGIN
verb and noun sense 1 Middle English : probably of Scandinavian origin.