Definitions

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

  • intransitive verb To avoid work or duty; shirk.
  • transitive verb To cut thin layers off (leather or rubber, for example); pare.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In gem-cutting, same as diamond-wheel .
  • To turn up the eyes.
  • In leather manufacturing and lapidary-work, to shave, scarf, or pare off; grind away (superfluous substance).

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

  • noun The iron lap used by diamond polishers in finishing the facets of the gem.
  • transitive verb To pare or shave off the rough or thick parts of (hides or leather).

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

  • noun The iron lap used by diamond polishers in finishing the facets of the gem.
  • verb To pare or shave off the rough or thick parts of (hides or leather).
  • verb UK To avoid one's lessons or, sometimes, work. Chiefly at school or university.

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

  • verb remove the surface of

Etymologies

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

[Perhaps from French esquiver, to dodge (from Spanish, esquivar or Italian, eschivare, both ultimately of Germanic origin; akin to Old English scēoh, shy) or from English dialectal skive, to move quickly.]

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

[Of Scandinavian origin; see skei- in Indo-European roots.]

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Examples

Comments

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  • Boris: No excuse for 'mass skive'

    (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7865169.stm)

    February 3, 2009

  • In the UK 'to skive' is more often (not attending, being absent, malingering or bunking off) from work or school. These ideas are in the examples but not in the definitions.

    August 24, 2011

  • "Stop skiving: Computers can SEE THROUGH your FAKE PAIN. http://m.theregister.co.uk/2014/03/25/program_discerns_faked_pain_better_than_humans_can/

    The Reg's usage of skiving seems different than the dictionary definition.

    March 25, 2014

  • To pull a sickie is just one way of skiving. One would be equally skiving by spending excessive time in the local pie shop or discussing the meaning of words like this on the internet.

    All those other definitions about paring and iron laps seem pretty obscure to me.

    March 25, 2014

  • Does someone have a list of leather-working terms? Was it me? (I know I have a list about glove-making.)

    March 25, 2014

  • Sensuous, passionate glove-making I presume?

    March 25, 2014

  • If the glove fits....

    March 25, 2014

  • Possibly also skyve.

    March 25, 2014

  • con-skive? (or conskyvial)

    March 26, 2014