skosh

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese 少し (sukoshi, “a little bit”), originally US armed forces slang.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /skoʊʃ/, /skɑʃ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊʃ, -ɒʃ

Noun

skosh (plural skoshes)

1. (informal) A tiny amount; a little bit.

   Alternative forms: skoosh, scooch

   Synonyms: tad, smidgen, jot; see also Thesaurus:modicum

   Antonym: scad

   He added just a skosh of vinegar, to give the recipe some zip.

   • 2002, Jan Hornung, Kiss the Sky: Helicopter Tales, →ISBN, page 62:

     “Fly just a skosh to your one o'clock,” Elroy said.

   • 2003, John Barnes, The Sky So Big and Black, →ISBN, page 216:

     Just a skosh after the lunch break, Bivvy and Erin were singing a song together.

   • 2005, Bill Hylton, Bill Hylton's Power-Tool Joinery, →ISBN:

     I set the bit a skosh under the width of the mortise's shoulder; […]

   • 2018 July 26, Jeannette Catsoulis, “Review: ‘Good Manners’ Is a Twisty Werewolf Tale From Brazil”, in New York Times‎^[1]:

     Wondrously weird and a skosh too long, “Good Manners” is a dark Brazilian fable of animalistic passions and social isolation.

   • 2018, Robia Rashid, “Juiced!” (11:17 from the start), in Joe Kessler, director, Atypical, season 2, episode 1, spoken by Elsa and Casey (Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jack Haven (Brigette Lundy-Paine)), via Netflix:

     Elsa: Oh, no, that blazer's a little big. You should let me tailor it.
     Casey: No thanks.
     Elsa: Take it in a smidge.
     Casey: Please don't.
     Elsa: Just a skosh.
     Casey: Bye, lady.

Further reading

• “skosh”, in Merriam-Webster.com Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “skosh”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.