A skiff is a small flat-bottomed open boat with a pointed bow and square stern, used mainly by fishermen. Skiffs are usually only able to hold one or two people and can use oars, a sail or a motor for propulsion.
The word has a complicated etymology: it comes from the Middle English skif, which derives from the Old French esquif, which in turn derives from the Old Italian schifo, which is itself of Germanic origin. The word is related to ship.
