Skewe

Part of speech: verb, noun, adjective

Definitions

1. An archaic spelling of a slanted or oblique position, meaning set at an angle rather than straight ; to turn or twist something so it lies out of line or becomes biased
2. A sloping, crooked angle away from straight ; to distort something so that it no longer sits true or fair
3. An old form meaning off-center or angled from the straight line ; to bend or warp something so that it becomes misaligned or unfairly weighted

Etymology: The spelling "skewe" is an older form of the modern "skew," and the word meant to turn aside or make something crooked. Its ancestry is uncertain. One proposal links it to an Old French verb, "eschuer," meaning to shun or dodge, which would also explain its kinship with "eschew." The sense of swerving away from a straight course fits that idea, but the link is not firmly established. The word then broadened into a family of uses. Its adjective form describes something set at a slant, and the noun names an oblique line or surface. The compound "skewbald," for a horse with irregular patches of white and another colour, combines "skew" with "bald" in its old sense of white-marked, which shows how the slanting idea was attached to patterns and markings.

Synonyms: slant, twist, distort, slanted

Antonyms: straighten, align, level