Definitions

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

  • noun A British form of ninepins, in which a wooden disk or ball is thrown to knock down the pins.
  • noun One of the pins used in skittles.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To knock over with a skittle-ball; knock down; bowl off.
  • noun One of the pins used in the game of skittles.
  • noun plural A game played with nine pins set upright at one end of an alley, the object of the player stationed at the other end being to knock over the set of pins with as few throws as possible of a large roundish ball.

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

  • adjective Pertaining to the game of skittles.
  • adjective an alley or court in which the game of skittles is played.
  • adjective a disk or flattish ball of wood for throwing at the pins in the game of skittles.

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

  • noun one of the wooden targets used in skittles
  • verb To play skittles.
  • verb To beat comprehensively.
  • verb To use as a recreational drug a certain over-the-counter cough medication that is taken orally and whose tablets are said to resemble Skittles.

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

  • verb play skittles
  • noun a bowling pin of the type used in playing ninepins or (in England) skittles

Etymologies

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

[Perhaps of Scandinavian origin.]

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Examples

  • IN THE COMMENTS: Here's how my ultra-sophisticated commenter Bissage clues me in that "skittle" is the wrong word:

    Archive 2007-05-01 Ann Althouse 2007

  • In his quotations from other authors he embodies variations which stand already severely condemned by first-class chess critics in various chess periodicals; and his original researches contain a considerable portion of "skittle" analysis, which does not bear cursory examination.

    Chess History and Reminiscences 1869

  • Rehman is bowling over the wicket, into the rough outside the left-hander's off-stump, and he's mixing up his pace, probing away, looking for a rip-snorter that will skittle the skipper.

    Pakistan v England – day four live! | Andy Bull and Rob Smyth 2012

  • Will some practical joker yank the hall rug out from under them and send them toppling into each other like skittle pins?

    Here Comes Another Lesson Stephen O’Connor 2010

  • Pop wore a short-sleeve polo shirt in dusty rose, tucked into well-ironed pleated khaki shorts from which his ropey calves emerged like skittle-pins.

    The Outlaws 2010

  • I'll play you any cramp game you like - shell-out, skittle pool, pyramids, caroline, doublet or go-back. 5 What d'ye say?

    The Sky Writer Geoff Barbanell 2010

  • The skittle set is very cool – each skittle has a rattle in it and the ball has a bell.

    2007 June « Mad Dave and Lil 2007

  • The blood on the wall quickly disappeared, as if it were water evaporating on a hot skittle.

    The Ark Boyd Morrison 2009

  • The first time I ever went bowling I knocked down every single skittle with my first ball!

    I made a bag!!!! Katy 2009

  • The skittle set is very cool – each skittle has a rattle in it and the ball has a bell.

    38 weeks (and 4 days) « Mad Dave and Lil 2007

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