skulk C2+ Topic:Senses & Perception US /skʌlk/ UK /skʌlk/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 verb to move or lurk furtively in order to avoid notice A figure was seen to skulk in the shadows of the alley. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 verb · to move or lurk furtively... lurkprowlsneakslinkcreeploiter Word family Derived forms skulker Related forms skulking Etymology AI details From Middle English skulken, of Scandinavian origin, akin to Norwegian skulka ('to lurk') and Danish skulke ('to shirk, play truant'). skulka Old Norse View etymology graph -> Topics Senses & Perception External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # skulk **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** verb **IPA (US):** /skʌlk/ **IPA (UK):** /skʌlk/ ## Meanings 1. to move or lurk furtively in order to avoid notice ## Examples - A figure was seen to skulk in the shadows of the alley. ## Synonyms - lurk - prowl - sneak - slink - creep - loiter ## Derived Forms - skulker ## Related Forms - skulking ## Roots and Affixes - Root: skulka ## Etymology From Middle English skulken, of Scandinavian origin, akin to Norwegian skulka ('to lurk') and Danish skulke ('to shirk, play truant'). ## AI Etymology Skulk comes from Middle English skulken, of Scandinavian origin, akin to Norwegian skulka ('to lurk') and Danish skulke ('to shirk, play truant'). The historical chain includes Old Norse skulka. The quoted older senses, "to lurk" and "to shirk, play truant", supply the semantic anchors for skulk. The formation is best read as borrowed: the word skulk carries its older form-history into a compact English lexical shape. In present English it is used as a verb, "to move or lurk furtively in order to avoid notice". English derivatives include skulker; related English forms include skulking. The result is a verb whose etymology preserves both the older form and the later English specialization. ## Topics - Senses & Perception markdown