skive
/ˈskaɪv/
"skive" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“skive” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 5
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To avoid one's lessons or work (chiefly at school or university); shirk.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | skive |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˈskaɪv/ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “skive” sits in English frequency
Rare enough to double-check
skive is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed /ˈskaɪv/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "To avoid one's lessons or work (chiefly at school or university); shirk.".
No misspelling variants are generated for skive in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: Probably from French esquiver (“slink away”), from Middle French esquiver (“to escape”), from Spanish esquivar (“to avoid, reject, elude”), from esquivo (“contemptuous, loathsome”), itself from Old French eschiver, of East Germanic origin, from Gothic *𐍃𐌺… The correct English form is skive, spelled S-K-I-V-E.
Definition
- 1To avoid one's lessons or work (chiefly at school or university); shirk.
Etymology
Probably from French esquiver (“slink away”), from Middle French esquiver (“to escape”), from Spanish esquivar (“to avoid, reject, elude”), from esquivo (“contemptuous, loathsome”), itself from Old French eschiver, of East Germanic origin, from Gothic *𐍃𐌺𐌹𐌿𐌷𐍃 (*skiuhs, “afraid, barefaced”), from Proto-Germanic *skeuhaz (“afraid, frightened”). Cognate with English shy, eschew.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “skive”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is S-K-I-V-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈskaɪv/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.