Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Moving quickly and lightly; lively.
  • adjective Restlessly active or nervous; restive.
  • adjective Undependably variable; mercurial or fickle.
  • adjective Shy; bashful.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Easily frightened; disposed to start, jump, or run, as if from fright.
  • Hence Shy; avoiding familiarity or intercourse; timid; retiring; coy.
  • Changeable; volatile; fickle: inconstant; capricious.
  • Deceitful; tricky; deceptive.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Easily frightened; timorous; shy; untrustworthy.
  • adjective Wanton; restive; freakish; volatile; changeable; fickle.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Easily scared or startled; timid.
  • adjective wanton; changeable; fickle

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective unpredictably excitable (especially of horses)

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, perhaps of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse skjōta, to shoot; see shoot.]

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Examples

  • Bloomberg News Sales are rising, but companies remain skittish over demand.

    Consumer Spending Grates Paul Vigna 2010

  • Still, shoppers remain skittish about the economic recovery, leaving the retail industry uncertain about the upcoming holiday season.

    September retail sales inch up Ylan Q. Mui 2010

  • Spirited horses, when not enough exercised, are often called skittish, when it is only play; and some grooms will punish them, but our John did not; he knew it was only high spirits.

    Black Beauty Anna Sewell 1849

  • The mare was not "skittish" -- by no means -- according to Tom's idea, but it would have been more than an ordinary mare to have stood the sudden descent of half-a-ton of snow without _some_ symptoms of consciousness.

    The Young Fur Traders 1859

  • The mare was not "skittish" -- by no means -- according to Tom's idea, but it would have been more than an ordinary mare to have stood the sudden descent of half a ton of snow without _some_ symptoms of consciousness.

    The Young Fur Traders 1859

  • But if some investors are skittish, that isn't reflected in the Treasury bond data.

    The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com The Huffington Post News Editors 2011

  • But if some investors are skittish, that isn't reflected in the Treasury bond data.

    The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com The Huffington Post News Editors 2011

  • Not knowing if they're going to play is only going to make them more skittish, which is really the last thing we need.

    Arseblog 2010

  • Ellie Mae, described as a skittish, one-and-a-half year old, medium-sized, beagle-shepherd mix, ran away from a volunteer dog walker on Independence Pass on March 3, according to Anne Gurchick, assistant director of the Aspen / Pitkin Animal Shelter.

    The Vail Trail - All Sections 2009

  • A few days before the firings in late 2006, then Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty e-mailed he was a little "skittish" about Bogden's firing but did not intervene to take his name off the list.

    Fired U.S. Attorney gets second chance 2009

Comments

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  • "But there is something charming about Easter's skittish date, and the way the holiday arrives as a surprise - even if it is not quite what th Council of Nicaea intended."

    The Guardian, 21 March 2008

    March 21, 2008

  • Taste The Strainbow

    September 26, 2008

  • Comedy troupe malady.

    April 14, 2009