skier

Etymology

It is formed from English ski + -er: Etymonline and the Shorter Oxford derive it from the verb,^[2][3][4] the OED from the noun.^[5] Merriam-Webster explains the less common spelling “skiier” from “skii-” as in skiing.^[6] The noun ski is from Norwegian ski, related to Old Norse skíð (“long snowshoe; stick of wood”).^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

A person who travels on skis: 1895, in the Chicago Advance.^[5][2][4]

Semantic evolution

The word followed soon after the verb ski, which Etymonline dates to 1885^[2] and the OED to 1893.^[5] Etymonline notes that skister was also tried, in 1898.^[2] From 1941 skier was also used for a water-skier.^[5]

Timeline

• 1895 – a person who skis.^[5][2]
• 1898 – skister tried as an alternative.^[2]
• 1941 – a water-skier.^[5]

Meanings

Noun

1. A person who skis, or travels on skis: The skiers waited for the lift.^[6][3][5]
2. A water-skier.^[5]

Word family

• water-skier

Related words

• ski
• skiing
• shide

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
4. ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster