skiff

Meaning

Noun

1. A small flat-bottomed open boat with a pointed bow and square stern.
2. Any of various types of boats small enough for sailing or rowing by one person.

Verb

To navigate in a skiff.

Verb

To fall lightly or briefly, and lightly cover the ground (etc).

Verb

To cut (a tea bush) to maintain the plucking table.

Synonyms

boat

⛵

rowboat

🚣

rowing boat

dinghy

shallop

yawl

little boat

gig

gondola

hulk

hull

jolly

scow

vessel

wherry

yawn

barc

light boat

barge

jolly boat

barque

beck

canoe

🛶

craft

cutter

dingey

Pronounced as (IPA)

/skɪf/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: skif

Cognate with English: skiffle

Cognate with English: skift

Cognate with Scots: skift

Cognate with Old Norse: skipta

In summary

From Middle English skif, from Middle French esquif, from Old Italian schifo (“small boat”), from Lombardic skif (“boat”), from Proto-Germanic *skipą (“boat, ship”). Doublet of ship.