Skew n. (Arch.) A stone at the foot of the slope of a gable, the offset of a buttress, or the like, cut with a sloping surface and with a check to receive the coping stones and retain them in place.
... this branch of science. The far-reaching discoveries of Sylvester and Cayley rank as one of the most important developments of pure mathematics. Numerous new fields were opened up, and have been diligently explored by many mathematicians. Skew-determinants were studied by Cayley; axisymmetric-determinants by Jacobi, V. A. Lebesque, Sylvester and O. Hesse, and centro-symmetric determinants by W. R. F. Scott and G. Zehfuss. Continuants have been ... — Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 3 - "Destructors" to "Diameter" • Various Read full book for free!