Skink \Skink\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Skinked; p. pr. & vb. n.
Skinking.]
[Icel. skenja; akin to Sw. sk["a]ka, Dan.
skienke, AS. scencan, D. & G. schenken. As. scencan is
usually derived from sceonc, sceanc, shank, a hollow bone
being supposed to have been used to draw off liquor from a
1. See Shank, and cf. Nunchion.]
To draw or serve, as drink. [Obs.]
Bacchus the wine them skinketh all about. --Chaucer.
Such wine as Ganymede doth skink to Jove. --Shirley.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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Skink \Skink\, n. [L. scincus, Gr. ????.]
[Written also
scink.]
(Zo["o]l.)
Any one of numerous species of regularly scaled harmless
lizards of the family Scincid[ae], common in the warmer
parts of all the continents.
Note: The officinal skink (Scincus officinalis) inhabits
the sandy plains of South Africa. It was believed by
the ancients to be a specific for various diseases. A
common slender species (Seps tridactylus) of Southern
Europe was formerly believed to produce fatal diseases
in cattle by mere contact. The American skinks include
numerous species of the genus Eumeces, as the
blue-tailed skink (E. fasciatus) of the Eastern
United States. The ground skink, or ground lizard
(Oligosoma laterale) inhabits the Southern United
States.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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