: popular music of Jamaican origin that combines elements of traditional Caribbean rhythms and jazz
Examples of ska in a Sentence
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Reggae with a Spanish twist In the 1960s and 1970s, Jamaicans introduced three subgenres of reggae – mento, ska and dancehall – to Panama.
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Brendan Frizzell, The Conversation, 27 Feb. 2026
So Elvis Costello, the Beatles, or reggae or English ska, something like that.
—Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 10 Feb. 2026
The Boston ska punk band Big D and the Kids Table has been around for 30 years but is still actively playing and recording.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 17 Jan. 2026
In the early 1960s, Jamaica was gaining its independence from Britain and the early sounds of reggae — first called ska and rocksteady — were catching on.
—Hillel Italie, Fortune, 24 Nov. 2025
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Brendan Frizzell, The Conversation, 27 Feb. 2026
So Elvis Costello, the Beatles, or reggae or English ska, something like that.
—Tribune News Service, Baltimore Sun, 10 Feb. 2026
The Boston ska punk band Big D and the Kids Table has been around for 30 years but is still actively playing and recording.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 17 Jan. 2026
In the early 1960s, Jamaica was gaining its independence from Britain and the early sounds of reggae — first called ska and rocksteady — were catching on.
—Hillel Italie, Fortune, 24 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for ska
Cite this Entry
“Ska.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ska. Accessed 25 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ska
noun
: popular music of Jamaican origin that combines elements of traditional Caribbean rhythms and jazz
Etymology
perhaps an alteration of scat "jazz singing with meaningless syllables"
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