Skillful

How to spell skillful

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce skillful

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does skillful mean?

1. adjectiveShowing practised ability, expertise, or dexterity in carrying out a task.

Skillful in a sentence

• The surgeon was praised for her skillful work in the operating room.

• A skillful negotiator can keep both sides talking when a deal stalls.

Where does skillful come from?

Language of origin: Old Norse

The base word skill comes from the Old Norse skil, which meant a distinction, a discernment, or the ability to tell one thing from another; Norse settlers brought it into late Old English during the Viking age. Over the centuries the sense narrowed from 'good judgement' to the modern idea of practised, expert competence at a task. The ending -ful is the same native English element seen in 'helpful' and 'careful', and it originally meant simply 'full of', so skillful literally means 'full of skill'. The spelling trap lives at the join: skill already ends in a double l, and the American form keeps both of those l's before adding -ful, giving skill plus ful, whereas the British and traditional Canadian form trims it to a single l as 'skilful'. Remembering that this spelling stacks the complete word 'skill' in front of '-ful' is the easiest way to keep both l's in place.

How the word is built

• skill (from Old Norse skil: discernment, ability)
• -ful (full of, having)