Meaning & use
skill
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
The ability to do something well, gained through training or practice.
Grammar: Countable for a particular ability (a skill), uncountable for general ability (it takes skill).
Patterns
- skill at something
- skill in something
- skill in doing something
Playing the violin takes years of skill and practice.
She showed great skill in handling the crisis.
Typing is a useful skill to learn.
nounusually plural
A particular ability or type of expertise needed for a job or activity.
Grammar: Often plural: communication skills, computer skills.
Patterns
- skills in something
- skills for something
Good communication skills are essential for this job.
The course teaches practical skills.
Employers look for strong problem-solving skills.
Word forms
| plural | skills |
|---|
Common combinations
- develop a skill
- You can develop this skill with practice.
- communication skills
- Communication skills matter in every job.
- learn a new skill
- He decided to learn a new skill.
- skill set
- Her skill set includes coding and design.
- great skill
- The surgeon operated with great skill.
Synonyms and how they differ
- ability
- Ability can be natural, while skill is usually learned.
- talent
- Talent is natural gift, whereas skill comes through effort.
- expertise
- Expertise is deep, specialist knowledge, more than ordinary skill.
Opposites
Word family
- skilled adjective
- having skill
- skillful adjective
- showing skill
- skillfully adverb
- in a skilled way
- unskilled adjective
- lacking skill or training
Commonly confused: skill or skilled?
skill vs skilled
Skilled is an adjective describing a person; skill is the noun for the ability.
Practice
She showed great ___ cooking for forty guests with only an hour's notice.
Choose one answer.
'Skill in' (or 'at') is the usual pattern before an activity. 'On' and 'to' are not standard with this noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “skill”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.