skitteryadj.

1905 M. Deane Little Neighbour 124 ‘She is just a little fool,’ said Roger—‘a skittery little fool, with no sense, and not much to look at’.

1941 Sun (Baltimore) 29 Aug. 17/2 The little fellers—the skittery moths, and the 11½-foot penguin dinghies, complete the list.

1974 D. Sears Lark in Clear Air x. 123 You can see that kind of eye in a skittery horse.

1976 Gramophone Oct. 607/1 The only two points at which I was aware of any lack of finish were in the finale of Op. 13 (sometimes a bit skittery) and the ‘Dance’ of Op. 14.

1955 Jrnl. Soc. Dyers & Colourists 71 707/1 A dye which is selective, i.e. skittery, in dyeing behaviour, however, will show marked differences in the rate of exhaustion.

1970 E. R. Trotman Dyeing & Chem. Technol. Textile Fibres (ed. 4) xvii. 442 It [sc. water solubility] increases the tendency to give ‘skittery’ shades, caused by the emphasis of variations in affinity from one fibre to another.

1952 Jrnl. Soc. Dyers & Colourists 68 306/1 Skitteriness, an undesired speckled effect in a yarn or fabric arising from differences in colour or depth of dyeing between adjacent fibres or portions of the same fibre.

1955 Jrnl. Soc. Dyers & Colourists 71 707/1 Skitteriness is a specific property of the dye... Skitteriness comes about through selective dyeing of different wool fibres.

1964 Dyeing of Polyester Fibres (I.C.I.) (ed. 3) viii. 237 Although the..dyes recommended..are those with superior levelling properties, it is still essential to ensure initial level application of the wool dye if excessive ‘skitteriness’ is to be avoided.