different between skirt vs snirt

English

Etymology

From Middle English skyrte, from Old Norse skyrta, from Proto-Germanic *skurtij?. Doublet of shirt. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Skoarte (“apron”), Dutch schort (“apron”), German Schürze (“apron”), Danish skørt (“skirt”), Swedish skört (“hem of a jacket”), Norwegian skjørt (“skirt”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) enPR: skû(r)t, IPA^(key): /sk??t/
• (US) enPR: skûrt, IPA^(key): /sk?t/
• Rhymes: -??(r)t

Noun

skirt (plural skirts)

1. An article of clothing, usually worn by women and girls, that hangs from the waist and covers the lower part of the body.
   • c. 1907, O. Henry, The Purple Dress:

     "I like purple best," said Maida. "And old Schlegel has promised to make it for $8. It's going to be lovely. I'm going to have a plaited skirt and a blouse coat trimmed with a band of galloon under a white cloth collar with two rows of—"

2. The part of a dress or robe, etc., that hangs below the waist.
   • 1885, Ada S. Ballin, The Science of Dress in Theory and Practice, Chapter XI:

     The petticoats and skirts ordinarily worn are decidedly the heaviest part of the dress ; hence it is necessary that some reform should be effected in these.

   • 1891, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Red-Headed League

     “It's all clear,” he whispered. “Have you the chisel and the bags? Great Scott! Jump, Archie, jump, and I'll swing for it!”
     Sherlock Holmes had sprung out and seized the intruder by the collar. The other dived down the hole, and I heard the sound of rending cloth as Jones clutched at his skirts.
3. A loose edging to any part of a dress.
   • July 27, 1713, Joseph Addison, The Guardian no. 118

     A narrow lace, or a small skirt of fine ruffled linen, which runs along the upper part of the stays before, and crosses the breast, being a part of the tucker, is called the modesty piece.

4. A petticoat.
5. (derogatory, slang) A woman.
   • 1931, Robert E. Howard, Alleys of Peril:

     "Mate," said the Cockney, after we'd finished about half the bottle, "it comes to me that we're a couple o' blightin' idjits to be workin' for a skirt."

     "What d'ya mean?" I asked, taking a pull at the bottle.

     "Well, 'ere's us, two red-blooded 'e-men, takin' orders from a lousy little frail, 'andin' the swag h'over to 'er, and takin' wot she warnts to 'and us, w'en we could 'ave the 'ole lot. Take this job 'ere now--"

6. (Britain, colloquial) Women collectively, in a sexual context.
7. (Britain, colloquial) Sexual intercourse with a woman.
8. Border; edge; margin; extreme part of anything.
   • ca. 1599, William Shakespeare, As You Like It, Act III, sc. 2:

     here in the skirts of the forest, like fringe upon a petticoat.
9. The diaphragm, or midriff, in animals.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Dunglison to this entry?)

Usage notes

• (article of clothing): It was formerly common to speak of “skirts” (plural) rather than “a skirt”. In some cases this served to emphasize an array of skirts of underskirts, or of pleats and folds in a single skirt; in other cases it made little or no difference in meaning.

Derived terms

Descendants

• ? Japanese: ???? (suk?to)
• ? Korean: ??? (seukeoteu)
• ? Scottish Gaelic: sgiort

Translations

Verb

skirt (third-person singular simple present skirts, present participle skirting, simple past and past participle skirted)

1. To be on or form the border of.

2. To move around or along the border of; to avoid the center of.
   • 1922, Virginia Woolf, Jacob's Room Chapter 1

     An enormous man and woman (it was early-closing day) were stretched motionless, with their heads on pocket-handkerchiefs, side by side, within a few feet of the sea, while two or three gulls gracefully skirted the incoming waves, and settled near their boots.
3. To cover with a skirt; to surround.
4. To avoid or ignore (something); to manage to avoid (something or a problem); to skate by (something).

Derived terms

Translations

Anagrams

• Kirst, stirk

Middle English

Noun

skirt

1. Alternative form of skyrte

English

Etymology 1

Verb

snirt (third-person singular simple present snirts, present participle snirting, simple past and past participle snirted)

1. (Scotland) To give a suppressed laugh or sharp intake of breath.
   • 1833, Anonymous, writing in The Dublin University Magazine: A Literary and Political Journal, page 575, "Willie and Pate" :

     "He grins, and snirts, and thraws ye ken — / I maist could die, wi' laughin."

   • 1837, James Hogg, "Katie Cheyne" in Tales and Sketches, page 172:

     "But ye see there was a great deal of blushing and snirting, and bits of made coughs, as if to keep down a thorough guffau."

   • 1871, William Black, A daughter of Heth: A novel, page 160:

     The Whaup grew very red in the face, and 'snirted' with laughter."

Noun

snirt (plural snirts)

1. (Scotland) A suppressed laugh; a sharp intake of breath.

See also

• snirtle

Etymology 2

Blend of snow +? dirt

Noun

snirt (uncountable)

1. (Canada, US) Snow that is dirty, often seen by the side of roads and parking lots that have been plowed.
   • 1975, United States House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture and Related Agencies, Agriculture and Related Agencies Appropriations for 1976, page 175 [1]:

     We then have what we call 'snirt' storms.

   • 1985, United States House Committee on Agriculture, General Farm Bill of 1985: Hearings Before the Committee on Agriculture, page 924 [2]:

     Snirt or a mixture of snow and dirt is the term popularly applied to the windrows of dirt along the roads during a Minnesota winter.

   • 1997, William S. Burroughs, Last Words, Grove Press, page 73, ?ISBN:

     'Snirt' is a thing of the spring.

   • 2004, Dean Norman, Studio Cards: Funny Greeting Cards and People Who Created Them, Trafford Publishing, ?ISBN, page 131:

     […] it wasn't a hard winter. Only a couple of blizzards and snirt and snuss storms.

Derived terms

• snirty

Anagrams

• NRTIs