sky

English Online Dictionary. What means sky‎? What does sky mean?

English

Etymology

The noun is derived from Middle English ski, skie, sky (“firmament, heavens, sky; cloud; cloud of mist or vapour; fog, mist; (astrology) certain configuration of the heavens; (astronomy) sphere of the celestial realm; (physiology) cloudiness, smoky residue (for example, in urine)”) [and other forms], from Old Norse ský (“cloud”), from Proto-Germanic *skiwją (“cloud; sky”), from *skiwô (“cloud; cloud cover, haze; sky”) (whence Old English sċēo (“cloud”) and Middle English skew (“air; sky; (rare) cloud”)), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewH- (“to cover; to conceal, hide”).

The verb is derived from the noun.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) enPR: skī, IPA^(key): /skaɪ/
• Homophones: Sky, Skye
• Rhymes: -aɪ

Noun

sky (plural skies)

2. The atmosphere above a given point, especially as visible from the surface of the Earth as the place where the sun, moon, stars, and clouds are seen.

   Synonyms: blue, firmament, heaven, (chiefly Scotland) lift, (literary or poetic, archaic) welkin
3. With a descriptive word: the part of the sky which can be seen from a specific place or at a specific time; its climate, condition, etc.
4. (chiefly literary and poetic, archaic) Usually preceded by the: the abode of God or the gods, angels, the souls of deceased people, etc.; heaven; also, powers emanating from heaven.
5. Ellipsis of sky blue.
6. (mathematics, theoretical physics) The set of all lightlike lines (or directions) passing through a given point in space-time.

   Synonym: celestial sphere

7. (obsolete, informal, rare) In an art gallery: the upper rows of pictures that cannot easily be seen; also, the place where such pictures are hung.
8. (obsolete) A cloud. [13th–16th c.]

Usage notes

The word can be used correctly in either the singular or plural form, but the plural is now mainly literary.

Alternative forms

• skie (obsolete)

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

sky (third-person singular simple present skies, present participle skying, simple past and past participle skied or skyed)

1. (transitive)
   1. (informal) To drink (a beverage) from a container without one's lips touching the container.
   2. (informal, dated) To hang (a picture on exhibition) near the top of a wall, where it cannot easily be seen; (by extension) to put (something) in an undesirable place.

      Antonym: floor
   3. (slang, dated) To toss (something) upwards; specifically, to flip (a coin).
   4. (sports)
      1. To clear (a high jump bar, hurdle, etc.) by a large margin.
      2. (ball games) To hit, kick, or throw (a ball) extremely high.
   5. (obsolete) To raise (the price of an item on auction, or the level of the bids generally) by bidding high.
2. (intransitive)
   1. To move quickly, as if by flying; to fly; also, to escape, to flee (especially by airplane).
   2. (sports)
      2. (ball games) To hit, kick, or throw a ball extremely high.
      3. (rowing) To raise an oar too high above the water.

Derived terms

• sky the towel, sky the wipe (chiefly Australia)

Translations

References

Further reading

• sky on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• KYS, YKS, YSK, Yks., kys

Danish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈskyˀ]

Etymology 1

Possibly from Middle Low German schūwe, schū, from Proto-West Germanic *skeuh. Compare English shy and German scheu.

Adjective

sky (neuter sky, plural and definite singular attributive sky)

1. shy

Synonyms

• bly
• genert

References

• “sky,4” in Den Danske Ordbog

Etymology 2

From Old Danish sky, from Old Norse ský, from Proto-Germanic *skiwją (“cloud, cloud cover”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewH- (“to cover, conceal”).

Noun

sky c (singular definite skyen, plural indefinite skyer)

1. cloud

Inflection

References

• “sky,1” in Den Danske Ordbog

Etymology 3

From French jus, from Latin iūs (“gravy, broth, sauce”). The Danish word was probably borrowed via German Jus or Schü, pronounced [ˈʃyː], with a regular substitution of German /ʃ/ with Danish /sk/.

Noun

sky c (singular definite skyen, not used in plural form)

1. gravy, stock (a kind of soup)
2. jelly (made of gravy)
3. (cooking) aspic

References

• “sky,2” in Den Danske Ordbog

Etymology 4

Possibly from Middle Low German schūwen, derived from the adjective.

Verb

sky (imperative sky, present skyr or skyer, past skyede, past participle skyet)

1. To shun.

References

• “sky,3” in Den Danske Ordbog

Middle English

Alternative forms

• ski, skie, ske, skye, scki, schi, schye, scy, skey, skige, skiȝe, skyȝe

Etymology

From Old Norse ský, from Proto-Germanic *skiwją. Doublet of skew.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /skiː/

Noun

sky (plural skyes)

1. The atmosphere or sky; that which lies above the ground.
2. A cloud or mist (mass of water droplets).
3. (rare, astronomy) A certain layout or part of the sky.
4. (rare, physiology) Clouds in urine.

Descendants

• English: sky
• Scots: sky, skie, skey, ske
• Yola: skee, skir (verb)

References

• “skī(e, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2019-07-23.

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology 1

From Middle Low German schuwe.

Adjective

sky (neuter singular sky, definite singular and plural sky or skye, comparative skyere, indefinite superlative skyest, definite superlative skyeste)

1. shy

Synonyms

• blyg
• sjenert

Etymology 2

From Old Norse ský, from Proto-Germanic *skiwją (“cloud, cloud cover”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kewH- (“to cover, conceal”).

Noun

sky f or m (definite singular skya or skyen, indefinite plural skyer, definite plural skyene)

1. cloud

Derived terms

Etymology 3

Possibly from Middle Low German schuwen

Verb

sky (imperative sky, present tense skyr, simple past skydde, past participle skydd, present participle skyende)

1. To avoid, shun.

Derived terms

• avsky

References

• “sky” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʃyː/

Etymology 1

From Middle Low German schuwe.

Adjective

sky (neuter singular sky, definite singular and plural sky or skye, comparative skyare, indefinite superlative skyast, definite superlative skyaste)

1. shy

Etymology 2

From Old Norse ský. Akin to English sky.

Noun

sky f (definite singular skya, indefinite plural skyer, definite plural skyene)

1. cloud

Derived terms

Etymology 3

Possibly from Middle Low German schuwen

Verb

sky (present tense skyr, past tense skydde, past participle skydd or skytt, passive infinitive skyast, present participle skyande, imperative sky)

1. To avoid, shun.

Derived terms

• avsky

References

• “sky” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse ský, from Proto-Germanic *skiwją.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʃyː/

Noun

skȳ n

1. cloud
2. sky

Declension

Descendants

• Swedish: sky

Scots

Etymology

From Middle English sky, from Old Norse ský.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [skaɪ]

Noun

sky (plural skies)

1. sky

   It's a fair braw sky we'v got the nicht. It's quite a beautiful sky we've got tonight.

2. daylight (especially at dawn)

   A wis up afore the sky. I was up before sunrise.

3. skyline, outline against the sky (especially of a hill)

   He saw the sky o a hill awa tae the west. He saw the outline of a hill in the west.

Derived terms

• sky laverock
• sky-goat
• skybrek
• skysettin
• tuith in the sky

Verb

sky (third-person singular simple present skies, present participle skies, simple past skyin, past participle skiet)

1. (of weather) To clear up.
2. To shade the eyes with the hand (so as to see better).
3. To hold up to the light and examine.

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɧyː/

Etymology 1

From Old Swedish skȳ, from Old Norse ský, from Proto-Germanic *skiwją, compare English sky.

Noun

sky c

1. (countable) sky

2. (countable) cloud

   Synonym: moln

Usage notes

Similar to English sky in somewhat ambiguously referring to clouds in certain expressions, often in the plural. Like in English, native speakers are likely to think "sky" rather than "cloud" and unconsciously process the plural as idiomatic. The usual modern word for cloud is moln.

Declension

See also

• himmel (“heaven”)

Etymology 2

From French jus.

Noun

sky c

1. (uncountable, cooking) the liquid that remains in a frying pan after the fried meat is ready

Declension

Derived terms

• skysås (“gravy”)

Etymology 3

From Middle Low German schǖwen, ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *skiuhijan. Compare origin of skygg.

Verb

sky (present skyr, preterite skydde, supine skytt, imperative sky)

1. to avoid (due to fear, disgust, or the like), to shun

Conjugation

Derived terms

• bränt barn skyr elden (“once bitten, twice shy”)
• sky som pesten (“avoid like the plague”)

See also

• skygg

References

• sky in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• sky in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• sky in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)
• sky in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)