as in scurrying
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 skittering
Mites, even when skittering in proximity to your eyeballs, are a totally normal part of your skin’s microbiome, feeding on oil and dead skin cells inside hair follicles.
—
Annie Blay-Tettey, Allure, 5 Mar. 2026
Instead of skittering off, the hot droplets start sticking and seeping into the surface texture, and leave wet patches behind.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 24 Feb. 2026
Ward put the Kings back ahead early in the second, banking in a skittering shot off the far post for his first goal of the season.
—Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Ward put the Kings back ahead early in the second, banking in a skittering shot off Quick's far post for his first goal of the season.
—CBS News, 20 Jan. 2026
Surprisingly, there are plenty of birds soaring, skittering, and swooping in the air at this time of year.
—Kier Holmes, Martha Stewart, 18 Jan. 2026
My nights were filled with the thumping of someone else’s dirty clothes and the feeling of something skittering across my leg.
—Literary Hub, 16 Jan. 2026
The failure of Hollywood’s first take on Godzilla, which reimagined this towering icon into a skittering lizard that was clearly aping more from Jurassic Park than any of the kaiju films that came before it, positioned the start of Godzilla’s third era as something of a return to form.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2026
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
Annie Blay-Tettey, Allure, 5 Mar. 2026
Instead of skittering off, the hot droplets start sticking and seeping into the surface texture, and leave wet patches behind.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 24 Feb. 2026
Ward put the Kings back ahead early in the second, banking in a skittering shot off the far post for his first goal of the season.
—Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Ward put the Kings back ahead early in the second, banking in a skittering shot off Quick's far post for his first goal of the season.
—CBS News, 20 Jan. 2026
Surprisingly, there are plenty of birds soaring, skittering, and swooping in the air at this time of year.
—Kier Holmes, Martha Stewart, 18 Jan. 2026
My nights were filled with the thumping of someone else’s dirty clothes and the feeling of something skittering across my leg.
—Literary Hub, 16 Jan. 2026
The failure of Hollywood’s first take on Godzilla, which reimagined this towering icon into a skittering lizard that was clearly aping more from Jurassic Park than any of the kaiju films that came before it, positioned the start of Godzilla’s third era as something of a return to form.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 9 Jan. 2026
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for skittering
Verb
-
Nearby, her downstairs neighbor, Marina Quiroz, was showing a video of rats scurrying through her kitchen to a representative of the city’s tenant protection office.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Going outside now means scurrying along giant arcades, shaded from the Sun by massive canopies that filter 99% of its UV light.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
From corners, Bromley pack the six-yard box, with multiple players darting towards its centre.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
23 Apr. 2026
-
The hungry sharks surrounded Barley in the clips, leaping out of the water and quickly darting around his Sea-Doo.—
Charna Flam,
PEOPLE,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Kick your legs in small up-and-down fluttering motions while keeping your lower back flat and abs tight throughout.—
Jakob Roze,
Health,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Video from the scene hours after the fire first erupted showed ash fluttering through the air and burned paper in the yards of homes across the street from the warehouse.—
Joy Benedict,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Suddenly Bieber was dancing around, trading fun glances with his fellow-artists, finally gesturing toward the usually obvious fact that a concert might also be an uncomplicatedly good time.—
Vinson Cunningham,
New Yorker,
18 Apr. 2026
-
Set the scene Arrive by car and enter the hotel’s main driveway to then be greeted by the resort’s grand Florentine Fountain with four sculpted water nymphs dancing around an octagonal pool, a visual amuse bouche to the opulence that awaits.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
17 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Skittering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skittering. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
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