as in scurried
to move quickly and lightly along a surface
Dry leaves skittered over the sidewalk. Mice skittered across the floor.
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Recent Examples of skittered
Iguanas skittered across the dirt; birds and insects filled the air with noise.
—
Brigid Washington, Travel + Leisure, 6 Apr. 2026
Ice crystals skittered across the plateau, catching in the curve of the sastrugi before blowing free.
—Cree Lefavour, New Yorker, 7 Mar. 2026
Gu skittered off the first rail and toppled to her side, dashing her title hopes.
—Joseph Wilson, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2026
The two tuxedo cats skittered uneasily away from her, afraid of what kind of chaos this toddling creature would bring into their lives.
—Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 7 Feb. 2026
Smaller critters — hermit crabs, lightning whelks and snails — skittered along the seafloor.
—Max Chesnes, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Feb. 2026
But Pastrnak had already headed up ice and the puck skittered into no-man’s land.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 24 Dec. 2025
Bats were flipped, benches cleared, Toronto’s manager was ejected and throws skittered around PNC Park.
—Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
Rumors of a Satanic curse on the event skittered around the Haight, so early on the morning of the 14th, Ginsberg, Snyder, and Alan Watts conducted a pradakshina, a Buddhist purification rite.
—Dennis McNally, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2025
Brigid Washington, Travel + Leisure, 6 Apr. 2026
Ice crystals skittered across the plateau, catching in the curve of the sastrugi before blowing free.
—Cree Lefavour, New Yorker, 7 Mar. 2026
Gu skittered off the first rail and toppled to her side, dashing her title hopes.
—Joseph Wilson, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2026
The two tuxedo cats skittered uneasily away from her, afraid of what kind of chaos this toddling creature would bring into their lives.
—Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 7 Feb. 2026
Smaller critters — hermit crabs, lightning whelks and snails — skittered along the seafloor.
—Max Chesnes, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Feb. 2026
But Pastrnak had already headed up ice and the puck skittered into no-man’s land.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 24 Dec. 2025
Bats were flipped, benches cleared, Toronto’s manager was ejected and throws skittered around PNC Park.
—Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
Rumors of a Satanic curse on the event skittered around the Haight, so early on the morning of the 14th, Ginsberg, Snyder, and Alan Watts conducted a pradakshina, a Buddhist purification rite.
—Dennis McNally, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for skittered
Verb
-
Wittorp scurried over to a curtained side entrance.—
Jane Bua,
New Yorker,
14 May 2026
-
After Malik closed out the fundraiser with a stump speech calling for taxing the rich, Johnson drove off in a black Porsche Cayenne, and a plump rat scurried by the venue’s entrance.—
Maxwell Adler,
Vanity Fair,
6 May 2026
Verb
-
One famous goal came in a memorable 3-1 group-stage win over Germany, when Van Basten darted to the near post to drag two defenders away, but simultaneously pointed over his shoulder to the onrushing Bergkamp.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
-
But after three games in the first round of the playoffs, with the Knicks down to the Atlanta Hawks, 2–1, Brown put Towns with the ball at the three-point line, and the diminutive Brunson darted toward the center.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
10 May 2026
Verb
-
Mats Zuccarello took a shot from the left point that went off Toews and fluttered towards the net.—
Corey Masisak,
Denver Post,
10 May 2026
-
Homemade fan art of Jacks, the series’s love interest, fluttered out of a collector’s-edition case.—
Anna Wiener,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
While Hayley and Sarah danced in one part of the room, 12-year-old Tiem Strouse danced in another.—
Scott Maxwell,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 May 2026
-
Afterward, guests dined in the State Dining Room and danced in the East Room.—
Brooke Migdon,
PEOPLE,
8 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Skittered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skittered. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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