skum

• IPA^(key): /skʌm/
• Rhymes: -ʌm

skum

1. Obsolete form of scum (“surface impurities”).
   • 1825, William Kitchiner, The Cook's Oracle:

     […] by keeping the Water a certain time heating without boiling — the Meat swells — becomes tender — its fibres are dilated — and it yields a quantity of Skum, which must be taken off as soon as it appears.

skum (third-person singular simple present skums, present participle skumming, simple past and past participle skummed)

1. Obsolete form of scum (“remove surface impurities”).
   • 1674, John Starkey, The Chyrurgeons Store-House:

     two ounces of Hony of Roses well skummed

• MuSK, Musk, musk

Either from an unattested Old Norse *skúm or borrowed from Middle Low German schūm, from Proto-Germanic *skūmaz m (“foam”), cognate with German Schaum, Dutch schuim.

• IPA^(key): /skomˀ/, [ˈsɡ̊ɔmˀ]

skum n (singular definite skummet, not used in plural form)

1. foam, froth (a mass of small bubbles in a liquid)
2. foam (plastic material with numerous small pockets of air or gas)

   Synonym: skumplast

• “skum” in Den Danske Ordbog

Compare with German Schaum

skum n (definite singular skummet, uncountable)

1. foam, froth
2. (from soap, shampoo) lather

• barberskum
• skumgummi
• skumme

skum

1. imperative of skumme

• “skum” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

• IPA^(key): /skʊmː/

skum n (definite singular skummet, uncountable)

1. foam, froth
2. (from soap, shampoo) lather

• barberskum
• skumgummi
• skumme

• “skum” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Inherited from Old Swedish skum, from Proto-Germanic *skūmaz. Possibly via Middle Low German schūm, cognate of German Schaum. Compare Dutch schuim, English scum.

skum (comparative skummare, superlative skummast)

1. dim (somewhat dark – often with negative connotations)

   ett sunkhak med skum belysning

   a dive bar with dim lighting

2. shady, dodgy

   Vara inblandad i skumma affärer

   Be mixed up in shady business

   några skumma typer

   some shady characters

3. weird, strange

   Vilket skumt resonemang

   What a strange line of reasoning

   Jag såg en skum man i affären igår

   I saw a strange man at the store yesterday

• (dark): mörk, oupplyst

• (dodgy, shady): skummis

skum n

1. foam, froth
2. head (foam on carbonated beverages)

• skum in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• skum in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• skum in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)
• skum in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)