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Glite Dictionary
to skip out

to skip out

22 7.2
To leave without telling anyone to avoid a duty or responsibility
  • phrasal verb
  • /skɪp aʊt/
  • Informal
translation icon : escaquearse
  • I know you stay until homeroom, when they do attendance, and then you skip out.

You have all kinds of excuses to just skip out on things.

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Examples

  • Stu arrived on the outskirts of Houston feeling liberated after skipping out on his meeting in New York.

    The Big Year (2011)

  • I can't skip out on the afternoon session.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • You want to skip out now?

    Los Angeles (2021)

  • How about you skip out early and take advantage of me tonight?

    Love, Wedding, Marriage (2011)

  • I was just wondering if I might skip out a little bit early for the holiday weekend.

    This Means War (2012)

  • I won the race and unfortunately had to skip out of the awards ceremony and events following the race.

    Blog text (24)

  • "I am not the kind of person who skips out on doing her work."

    Blog text (25)

  • Everyone was super mad about at us for skipping out on Gabe's birthday party.

  • You're gonna skip out of the girls' volleyball game early?

    Warrior (2011)

  • My friend decided to skip out on the meeting to avoid answering tough questions.

Synonyms

to leave
vsto skip out
∞ 1.0

To go away from a place, person, or group

adds sense of avoiding duty rather than a neutral ending of involvement
to walk away
vsto skip out
632 3.5

Leave a person, place, or situation without taking part anymore

often implies departing to avoid duty rather than calm detachment
to bail
vsto skip out
  • UK
247 7.1

Leave suddenly to avoid a responsibility or task

matches but is slightly more about avoiding duty specifically
to walk out of
vsto skip out
  • Informal
164 3.1

To leave a meeting or event suddenly to show you disagree

can also mean departing to avoid duty, not only protest
to skip
vsto skip out
  • Informal
147 3.7

To leave a place quickly and secretly to avoid trouble

emphasizes escaping responsibility rather than just avoiding attention
to sneak out
vsto skip out
  • Informal
125 3.7

To leave a place quietly so no one notices you

is used when purpose is to avoid duty rather than secrecy alone
to walk out
vsto skip out
  • Informal
112 3.4

Leave a place suddenly because you are angry or protesting

often involves avoiding duty, not protest or anger motivation
to blow off
vsto skip out
  • Informal
103 7.0

To not attend or take part in something you should, often to do something else instead

implies avoiding responsibility rather than casual disinterest
to run out
vsto skip out
78 2.0

Leave a place suddenly, often to avoid someone or something

is used when purpose is to dodge responsibility rather than panic alone
to up and leave
vsto skip out
  • Informal
41 6.3

Go away suddenly without warning or explanation

is used when action avoids a responsibility or duty
to walk off
vsto skip out
  • Informal
37 3.5

To leave a place suddenly to show you are angry or upset

may instead indicate escaping responsibility rather than showing feeling
to skip town
vsto skip out
  • Informal
28 8.1

Leave a place suddenly and secretly to avoid trouble or debt

is focused on avoiding a duty or legal responsibility specifically
to shove off
vsto skip out
  • Informal
12 7.7

Leave a place quickly, often in a rude way

focuses on escaping responsibility rather than showing rudeness
to duck out
vsto skip out
  • Informal
12 7.2

To leave a place quickly and quietly to avoid something you should do

is used when departing to escape duty rather than secrecy alone
to dip out
vsto skip out
  • Informal
1 9.1

To leave a place quietly or suddenly without telling others

is the same idea but more informal and casual
to blow this popsicle stand
vsto skip out
  • Informal
1 9.9

To leave a place quickly because you do not want to be there

is more about departing to escape responsibility than boredom
to pop off
vsto skip out
  • UK
1 7.9

To leave a place quickly, often without saying goodbye

focuses on avoiding duty rather than just sudden exit
to go offski
vsto skip out
  • Slang
9.9

To leave a place suddenly, usually to go somewhere else

implies escaping responsibility rather than mere eagerness
to give a miss
vsto skip out
  • UK
7.3

Decide not to go to an event or activity

is chosen to avoid responsibility rather than mere absence

Antonyms

to stay
∞ 1.0

To remain in one place and not leave

to fulfill
  • US
265 2.8

To do what is required or promised

How Secretly

to abscond
  • Formal
11 8.5
to skip out
  • Informal
22 7.2
to sneak away
  • Informal
17 3.6
to slip out
39 3.8
to leave
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

skip out infinitive
skipped out past
skipped out past participle
skipping out present participle
skips out third person singular

Morphology

skip + out

The meaning 'to leave unexpectedly or without giving notice' is directly derivable from combining 'skip' (to leave suddenly/secretly) with 'out' (away/from the interior), following a common English verb+particle pattern where 'out' marks leaving. This compositional, literal relation is predictable and frequent, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would likely infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Skip out may come from the picture of someone quietly skipping through the back door out of a place to avoid paying a bill or doing a job. So, skip out means 'to leave suddenly or without notice, especially to avoid a duty or responsibility'.