Dictionary

skerry en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈskɛɹi/ (UK, US)

Etymology

From dialectal Scots (Shetlandic and Orcadian) skerry, from Old Norse sker (whence Danish skær and Norwegian Bokmål skjær). Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker-.

Meanings

1. A small rocky island which may be covered by the sea at high tide or during storms.
   • The Seal (phoca vitulina, Lin. Syft.) which is here generally known by the name of selchy, is very common on most of our low shores, but particularly on those of the small holms and remote skerries, where it is frequently seen reposing and basking in the sun [...]. 1805, George Barry, History of the Orkney Islands, page 322:
   • The fog disappeared gradually, disclosing the blue line of the coast and the far outlying naked skerries, while before us lay the ocean in its interminable extent, blushing in the morning sun. 1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 182:
   • Grim the Halogalander's crew sailed along Borgarfjord beyond the skerries, then cast anchor until the storm died down and the weather brightened up. 1997, Bernard Scudder, transl., Egil's Saga, Penguin Books, page 46:
   • The three men proceeded, with a little difficulty, to scale the skerry, finding Gannets and Guillemots on the upper reaches. 2000, Jeremy Gaskell, Who Killed the Great Auk?, Oxford University Press, page 20:
   • His companions were very unwilling to leave him on the skerries, perhaps to perish, but the surge increased so fast that after many unsuccessful attempts to bring the boat in close to the stacks, they were obliged to depart and leave the unfortunate man to his fate. 1828, Thomas Keightley, The Fairy Mythology, volume I, London: William Harrison Ainsworth, page 266:

Forms

Descendants

sgeri

Translations (29)

fr écueil (small rocky island) · et skäär (small rocky island) · gv sker (small rocky island) · lt šchèrai (small rocky island) · gl illote (small rocky island) · sv skär (small rocky island) · bg скалист остров (small rocky island) · ka შხერი (small rocky island) · el βραχονησίδα (small rocky island) · fo fles (small rocky island) · pl szkier (small rocky island) · ca illot rocós (small rocky island) · cy sgeri (small rocky island) · de Schäre (small rocky island) · nl scheer (small rocky island) · da skær (small rocky island) · fo sker (small rocky island) · ru шхе́ра (small rocky island) · lv šēra (small rocky island) · eo ŝero (small rocky island) · nn skjer (small rocky island) · fi kari (small rocky island) · fi luoto (small rocky island) · sv båda (small rocky island) · pl szer (small rocky island) · ga sceir (small rocky island) · gd sgeir (small rocky island) · is sker (small rocky island) · nb skjær (small rocky island)