SKID

[noun] [C]The best way of dealing with a skid (= an act of sliding) is to turn the front wheels in the direction of the skid.She was riding too fast on a wet road, and the motorbike went into a skid (= started to slide).Skids are long flat pieces under some aircraft such as helicopters, which help the aircraft to land.A skid is also a support, often made of wood, for raising heavy objects off the ground or moving them.There were skid marks (= black marks made by the tyres of a car which slid) on the road where a car had braked suddenly.(esp. US informal) Skid row is a poor and dirty part of a town where many jobless, homeless and drunk people live.William Kennedy wrote several books about life on skid row.(informal) Something that is on the skids is experiencing difficulties and is unlikely to continue successfully.Lots of small businesses are on the skids (= likely to close) at the moment.Their marriage seems to be on the skids (= likely to end).(UK and ANZ informal) Local residents have put the skids under plans to build a new shopping centre (= have caused the plans to fail). [T]