skirmish

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A brief battle between small groups, usually part of a longer or larger battle or war.
  2. Any minor dispute.
  3. A type of outdoor military style game using paintball or similar weapons.
verb
  1. To engage in a minor battle or dispute.

Pronunciation

/ˈskɜːmɪʃ/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-skirmish.wav /ˈskɝmɪʃ/

Word forms

skirmish skirmishes scirmish skirmishing skirmished

Etymology

From Middle English skirmish (as a verb), from Old French escarmouche (“skirmish”), from Italian scaramuccia, earlier schermugio. Doublet of escarmouche, Scaramouche, and Scaramucci.

Synonyms

Related words

This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.