# skew

> English word · Verb · IPA /skjuː/ · frequency rank #28,725

## Definitions
1. To form or shape in an oblique way; to cause to take an oblique position.
2. To form or shape in an oblique way; to cause to take an oblique position.
3. To bias or distort in a particular direction.
4. To hurl or throw.
5. To move obliquely; to move sideways, to sidle; to lie obliquely.
6. To jump back or sideways in fear or surprise; to shy, as a horse.
7. To look at obliquely; to squint; hence, to look slightingly or suspiciously.

## Etymology
The verb is derived from Middle English skeuen, skewe, skewen (“to run at an angle or obliquely; to escape”), from Old Northern French escuer [and other forms], variants of Old French eschuer, eschever, eschiver (“to escape, flee; to avoid”) (modern French esquiver (“to dodge (a blow), duck; to elude, evade; to slip away; to sidestep”)), from Frankish *skiuhan (“to dread; to avoid, shun”), from Proto-Germanic *skiuhijaną (“to frighten”). The English word is cognate with Catalan esquiu (“evasive, shy”), Danish skæv (“crooked, slanting; skew, wry”) (> Norwegian Bokmål skjev), Dutch scheef (“crooked, slanting”), Norwegian skeiv (“crooked, lopsided; oblique, slanting; distorted”), Saterland Frisian skeeuw (“aslant, slanting; oblique; awry”), and is a doublet of eschew.
The adjective and adverb are probably derived from the verb and/or from askew, and the noun is derived from either the adjective or the verb.

## Easily confused with
- **SW** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-sw)
- **sky** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-sky)
- **sue** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-sue)
- **ski** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-ski)
- **sow** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-sow)
- **SME** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-sme)
- **SSE** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-sse)
- **soe** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-soe)
- **SLE** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-sle)
- **skin** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-skin)
- **slow** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-slow)
- **snow** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-snow)
- **stem** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-stem)
- **skip** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-skip)
- **sued** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-sued)
- **spec** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-spec)
- **stew** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-stew)
- **Skye** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-skye)
- **slew** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-slew)
- **skid** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skew-vs-skid)

## Common misspellings (6)
`ksew`, `sekw`, `skeww`, `skkew`, `skwe`, `sskew`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/skew