ski

S1K5I1
/skiː/UK, rare/ʃiː/

noun

One of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow or water.

“to go for a ski”

Very commonScrabble 7

Meanings

nounski (plural skis)

plural skis

  1. One of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow or water.

    We skied back the way we had come for about thirty minutes when I saw her. Mary was hanging upside down by the tips of her skies from a tree well.

    2014, Inspiring Generations: 150 Years, 150 Stories in Yosemite, →ISBN, page 188
    2 more examples

    Disaster at the newly opened ski resort where hard-driving tycoon Hudson is determined to double his not insubstantial investment while his ex-wife Mia is making whoopee with one of the locals championing ecology.

    1990, Leonard Maltin, Leonard Maltin's TV Movies and Video Guide, Penguin, →ISBN, page 55

    Yilamujiang grew up in Altay, a prefecture bordering Mongolia in far northwest Xinjiang. Chinese officials consider the region the cradle of Alpine sport, after cave paintings of hunters on skis were dated at 10,000 years old. Locals still use hand-carved wooden skis covered in a horsehide, although mostly now for the benefit of tourists.

    2022 May 2, Adam Kilgore, Christian Shepherd, “A cauldron-lighting flashpoint one night, Dinigeer Yilamujiang was a skier the next day”, in The Washington Post, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 05 Feb 2022, Olympics
  2. aeronauticsOne of a pair of long flat runners under some flying machines, used for landing.
  3. A trip made by skiing.

    to go for a ski

verbski (third-person singular simple present skis or skies, present participle skiing, simple past and past participle skied)

present singular third person skis · present singular third person skies · participle present skiing · participle past skied · past skied

  1. intransitiveTo move on skis.

    We skied back the way we had come for about thirty minutes when I saw her. Mary was hanging upside down by the tips of her skies from a tree well.

    2014, Inspiring Generations: 150 Years, 150 Stories in Yosemite, →ISBN, page 188
    1 more example

    Townsend hare inhabit this area, particularly above the cabin, and a skier is likely to have one explode from a tree well and disappear into the whiteness as he skis by. Life is a constant bivouac for them -- they spend days huddled in tree wells during storms -- but I suspect they are as content and warm in their luxurious coats as we are in a cabin.

    2014, Patrick Armstrong, The Log of a Snow Survey, →ISBN
  2. transitiveTo travel over (a slope, etc.) on skis; to travel on skis at (a place), (especially as a sport).

    We spent the winter holidays skiing the Alps

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*skey-“to cut, split”
  2. Proto-Germanic*skīdą“stick”
  3. Old Norseskíð“stick of wood, snowshoe”
  4. Englishski

From Norwegian ski, from Old Norse skíð (“stick of wood, snowshoe”), from Proto-Germanic *skīdą (“stick”), from Proto-Indo-European *skey- (“to cut, split”) (see also shed). Cognate with Old English sċīd (“stick of wood”) (modern shide), Old High German skit (Modern German Scheit (“log”)).

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic تَزَلُّج
  • تَزَلُّج (tazalluj)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Basque eski, eskiatu
  • eskione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • eskiatumove on skis
Bengali স্কী
  • স্কী (ski)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Bulgarian ска, ски
  • ска (ska)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • ски (ski)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • карам ски (karam ski)move on skis
Catalan esquí, esquiar
  • esquíone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • esquiarmove on skis
Chinese Cantonese 滑雪板
  • 滑雪板 (waat⁶ syut³ baan²)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Chinese Mandarin 雪板, 滑雪板
  • 雪板 (xuěbǎn)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • 滑雪板 (huáxuěbǎn)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • 滑雪 (huáxuě)move on skis
Czech lyže, lyžovat
  • lyžeone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • lyžovatmove on skis
Danish ski
  • skione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Dutch ski, skiën
  • skione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • skiënmove on skis
Esperanto skio, skii
  • skioone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • skiimove on skis
  • skikurimove on skis
Estonian suusk, suusad
  • suuskone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • suusadone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • suusatamamove on skis
Finnish suksi, vesisuksi
  • suksione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • vesisuksione of a pair of long flat runners designed for being pulled by a boat over water
  • hiihtää (X-country)move on skis
  • lasketellamove on skis
  • hiihtääto travel on skis
French ski, skier
  • skione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • skiermove on skis
German Ski, Schi
  • Skione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • Schione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • Ski fahrenmove on skis
  • Schi fahrenmove on skis
  • Ski laufenmove on skis
  • Schi laufenmove on skis
Greek σκι, χιονοπέδιλο
  • σκι (ski)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • χιονοπέδιλο (chionopédilo)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • χιονοδρομώ (chionodromó)move on skis
Hebrew סקִי
  • סקִי (ski)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Hindi स्की
  • स्की (skī)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Hungarian sí, síel
  • síone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • síelmove on skis
Icelandic skíði, andri
  • skíðione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • andrione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • öndurone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • skíðamove on skis
Irish scí, sciáil
  • scíone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • sciáilmove on skis
Italian sci, sciare
  • scione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • sciaremove on skis
Japanese スキー, スキーをする
  • スキー (sukī)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • スキーをする (sukī o suru)move on skis
Korean 스키
  • 스키 (seuki)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Latin narta, moveor cum nartās
  • nartaone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • moveor cum nartāsmove on skis
  • eo cum nartasmove on skis
Latvian slēpe, slēpot
  • slēpeone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • slēpotmove on skis
Lithuanian slidė
  • slidėone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Māori panunu, retihuka)
  • panunuone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • retihuka)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • retihukarere)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • retiwai)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • retione of a pair of long flat runners designed for being pulled by a boat over water
  • retimove on skis
  • whakaretimove on skis
  • whakaretiretimove on skis
  • rerehukamove on skis
  • retiretimove on skis
Norwegian Bokmål ski, gå på ski
  • skione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • gå på skimove on skis
Polish narta, narta wodna
  • nartaone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • narta wodnaone of a pair of long flat runners designed for being pulled by a boat over water
  • jeździć na nartachmove on skis
  • podróżować na nartachto travel on skis
Portuguese esqui, esquiar
  • esquione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • esquiarmove on skis
Romanian schi, schia
  • schione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • schiamove on skis
Russian лы́жа, лы́жи
  • лы́жа (lýža)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • лы́жи (lýži)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • ката́ться на лы́жах (katátʹsja na lýžax)move on skis
Slovak lyža
  • lyžaone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Spanish esquí, esquiar
  • esquíone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • esquiarmove on skis
Swedish skida, skida
  • skidaone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • skidamove on skis
  • åka skidormove on skis
Tagalog eski, mag-eski
  • eskione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • mag-eskimove on skis
Thai สกี
  • สกี (sà-gii)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Turkish kayak, kaymak
  • kayakone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • kaymakmove on skis
Ukrainian ли́жа, ката́тися на ли́жах
  • ли́жа (lýža)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • ката́тися на ли́жах (katátysja na lýžax)move on skis
Urdu سْکی
  • سْکی (skī)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
Vietnamese xki, ván trượt tuyết
  • xkione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • ván trượt tuyếtone of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • trượt tuyếtmove on skis
Welsh sgi, sgio
  • sgione of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow
  • sgiomove on skis
  • sgïomove on skis
Yiddish נאַרטע
  • נאַרטע (narte)one of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with ski

All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

ski. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ski

MLA

“ski.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ski. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ski,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ski.

Source: ski on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.