skiver

Skiver is a term with several distinct meanings in English and in Scandinavian languages. In English, skiver is informal for a person who shirks or avoids work; the noun arises from the verb skive, meaning to dodge duties. It is largely informal, and may be encountered in colloquial speech or journalism to describe someone who frequently skives off.

In crafts and manufacturing, a skiver is a tool or machine used to thin or shave material. Leatherworkers use skiving knives and leather skivers to reduce thickness along edges, improve flexibility, and allow pieces to sit flush when stitched or glued. A skiving machine can process longer runs of leather, fabric, or similar sheet material, producing uniform thin layers.

In Danish and Norwegian, skive means slices or discs. The plural skiver denotes slices of bread, cheese, cold cuts, or other foods, and the word commonly appears on menus, recipes, and product labels. This use reflects the general sense of a thin, flat piece separated from a whole.

The senses are separate in usage and etymology: the slang term in English, the hardware term in crafts, and the culinary/geographic sense in Scandinavian languages. They are not interchangeable, and context usually clarifies which meaning is intended.