skitter

verb

skit·​ter ˈski-tər 

skittered; skittering; skitters

intransitive verb

1

a

: to glide or skip lightly or quickly

b

: to move in or as in a jittery or jerky way

leaves skittering over the sidewalk

2

: to twitch the hook of a fishing line through or along the surface of water

transitive verb

: to cause to skitter

Examples of skitter in a Sentence

Dry leaves skittered over the sidewalk.

Mice skittered across the floor.

Recent Examples on the Web

The trout went nuts over the little black mice skittering on the ice, so Olthuis kept the camera going while Cort hooked fish after fish. —Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 4 Dec. 2025

The show, documented with the live album In the Blue Light, jettisons the skittering, moonlit electronics of the star’s back catalogue, softening stark arrangements formerly designed to hug the vocalist like a wintry chill. —Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025

No one loves to see dust bunnies skittering across the floor. —Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 20 Nov. 2025

When the Huskies lined up for a 50-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter, Ben Barten’s outstretched hand met the ball, sending it skittering across the slick turf. —Ira Gorawara, New York Times, 9 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

probably frequentative of English dialect (Scots and northern) skite to move quickly, probably from Old Norse skyt-, stem of skjōta to shoot

First Known Use

1845, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Rhymes for skitter

• bitter
• critter
• fitter
• fritter
• glitter
• hitter
• jitter
• knitter
• litter
• quitter
• ritter
• splitter

Kids Definition

skitter

verb

skit·​ter ˈskit-ər 

: to glide or skip lightly or quickly : skim along a surface