skirt
UK[skɜːt]US[skɜːrt]
n
A piece of clothing for women and girls that hangs from the waist and does not have legs.
n
The part of a dress, coat, etc. that hangs below the waist.
v
To go around the edge of something; to avoid dealing with something directly.
Etymology
The word 'skirt' shares a deep Proto-Germanic root with the word 'shirt', both originating from skurtijōn. This common ancestor reflects the concept of a short garment. In Old Norse, 'skyrta' evolved to refer to a kind of shirt or tunic. When borrowed into Middle English, its meaning specialized to denote the lower, separate part of a garment, distinguishing it from the upper 'shirt'. This semantic split illustrates how two words from the same source can diverge in meaning, with 'skirt' coming to signify a garment hanging from the waist.
Analysis
The modern English word 'skirt' is a simplex word derived from the Old Norse 'skyrta', meaning a shirt or a kind of tunic. It entered Middle English with the specific sense of the lower part of a garment.
Examples
She was wearing a black leather skirt.
He lives on the skirts of the city.
The new road will skirt the town to the east, reducing traffic in the center.