skew-whiff
/ˈskjuː.(w)ɪf/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 2.80 in modern English
28
Scrabble Score
9
Letters
2
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
Example Sentences
- "I hung up that picture, but it looks skew-whiff to me."
- "“[…]I′ve just been looking up at them and it seems to me that Cassiopeia′s Chair is a bit more skew-whiff than usual. Either it′s been moved or we′re heading the wrong way.”"
- "I nudged him to remember what was surely the best day of his life—when he had walked serenely through the milling throng, moist-eyed, and sheepish grin more skew-whiff than ever, in the starling-shrieking, jabbering cockpit of that tumbledown stadium at Delhi on Christmas Eve in 1981."
- "His genially skew-whiff posture for the camera may be intended to deflect easy attempts to get an angle on him."
- "Johnson replied, with a shake of his massive head so vigorous that his ill-fitting wig became even more skew-whiff:[…]."
- "He wasn′t wearing shoes or a jacket and tie, and his front stud was undone, so that the white collar stood up skew-whiff."
Etymology
From skew + weft. The expression 'skew weft' dates at least from the 18th century as a term used by handloom weavers, typically in northern England. It was used originally to describe fabric which was out of alignment, and the term survives today in the manufacture of glass fiber cloth. The word weft does not derive from 'whiff' as in a puff of air (as suggested elsewhere). The modern spelling comes from a corruption of 'skew-wift' whose sound developed colloquially in spoken English from the original. Bow weft also exists.
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈskjuː.(w)ɪf/
- British English: /ˈskjuː.(w)ɪf/
Usage
- British usage
- Colloquial
Inflected Forms
more skew-whiff (comparative)
most skew-whiff (superlative)
skew-wift (alternative)
skew wift (alternative)
skew wiff (alternative)
skew-wiff (alternative)
scew-whiff (alternative)
skew whift (alternative)
skew-whift (alternative)
skew whiff (alternative)
skewiff (alternative)
ski whiff (alternative)