peel

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peel

skin or rind of a fruit such as banana or orange; to strip away or pare: peel potatoes

Not to be confused with:

peal – a ringing of a set of bells; chime: The church bells peal Christmas carols.

peel¹

(pēl)

1. The skin or rind of certain fruits and vegetables.

2. A chemical peel.

v. peeled, peel·ing, peels

v.tr.

1. To strip or cut away the skin, rind, or bark from; pare.

2. To strip away; pull off: peeled the label from the jar.

v.intr.

1. To lose or shed skin, bark, or other covering.

2. To come off in thin strips or pieces, as bark, skin, or paint: Her sunburned skin began to peel.

Phrasal Verbs:

peel off

1. To remove (an article of clothing that fits snugly).

2. To break away from a group in motion, especially to leave flight formation in order to land an aircraft or make a dive.

3. To leave or depart, especially in a hurry.

peel out

To leave quickly, especially by accelerating a vehicle so that the tires spin: peeled out of the driveway.

[From Middle English pilen, pelen, to peel, from Old French peler, and Old English pilian (both from Latin pilāre, to deprive of hair, from pilus, hair) and from Old French pillier, to tug, pull, plunder (from Latin pilleum, felt cap).]

peel²

(pēl)

1. A long-handled, shovellike tool used by bakers to move bread or pastries into and out of an oven.

2. Printing A T-shaped pole used for hanging up freshly printed sheets of paper to dry.

[Middle English, from Old French pele, from Latin pāla, spade, peel; see pag- in Indo-European roots.]

peel³

(pēl)

A fortified house or tower of a kind constructed in the borderland of Scotland and England in the 1500s.

[Middle English pel, stake, small castle, from Anglo-Norman, stockade, variant of Old French, stake, from Latin pālus; see pag- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

peel

(piːl)

1. (tr) to remove (the skin, rind, outer covering, etc) of (a fruit, egg, etc)

2. (intr) (of paint, etc) to be removed from a surface, esp through weathering

3. (intr) (of a surface) to lose its outer covering of paint, etc esp through weathering

4. (intr) (of a person or part of the body) to shed skin in flakes or (of skin) to be shed in flakes, esp as a result of sunburn

5. (Croquet) croquet to put (another player's ball) through a hoop or hoops

6. keep one's eyes peeled keep one's eyes skinned to watch vigilantly

the skin or rind of a fruit, etc

[Old English pilian to strip off the outer layer, from Latin pilāre to make bald, from pilus a hair]

peel

(piːl)

(Tools) a long-handled shovel used by bakers for moving bread, in an oven

[C14 pele, from Old French, from Latin pāla spade, from pangere to drive in; see palette]

peel

(piːl)

(Fortifications) (in Britain) a fortified tower of the 16th century on the borders between England and Scotland, built to withstand raids

[C14 (fence made of stakes): from Old French piel stake, from Latin pālus; see pale², paling]

Peel

(piːl)

1. (Biography) John, real name John Robert Parker Ravenscroft. 1939–2004, British broadcaster; presented his influential Radio 1 music programme (1967–2004) and Radio 4's Home Truths (1998–2004)

2. (Biography) Sir Robert. 1788–1850, British statesman; Conservative prime minister (1834–35; 1841–46). As Home Secretary (1828–30) he founded the Metropolitan Police and in his second ministry carried through a series of free-trade budgets culminating in the repeal of the Corn Laws (1846), which split the Tory party

ˈPeelite n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

peel¹

(pil)

v.t.

1. to strip (something) of its skin, rind, bark, etc.

2. to strip away from something: to peel paint from a car.

v.i.

3. (of skin, bark, paint, etc.) to come off in pieces.

4. to lose the skin, rind, bark, paint, etc.

5. Informal. to undress.

6. peel off,

a. (of an aircraft) to leave a flight formation with a banking turn.

b. to veer away from a path or group.

7. the skin or rind of a fruit or vegetable.

Idioms:

keep one's eyes peeled, to watch closely or carefully; be alert.

[before 1100; Middle English pelen, Old English pilian to strip, skin < Latin pilāre to remove hair, derivative of pilus hair]

peel²

(pil)

n.

a shovellike implement for moving bread, pies, etc., into or out of an oven.

[1350–1400; Middle English pele < Middle French < Latin pāla spade]

Peel

(pil)

n.

Sir Robert, 1788–1850, British statesman: founder of the London constabulary; prime minister 1834–35, 1841–46.

rind, peel - The rind is the hard or tough covering on oranges, grapefruit, and watermelon; once removed, skin or rind is usually known as peel.

peel

Past participle: peeled
Gerund: peeling

Imperative
peel
peel

Present
I peel
you peel
he/she/it peels
we peel
you peel
they peel

Preterite
I peeled
you peeled
he/she/it peeled
we peeled
you peeled
they peeled

Present Continuous
I am peeling
you are peeling
he/she/it is peeling
we are peeling
you are peeling
they are peeling

Present Perfect
I have peeled
you have peeled
he/she/it has peeled
we have peeled
you have peeled
they have peeled

Past Continuous
I was peeling
you were peeling
he/she/it was peeling
we were peeling
you were peeling
they were peeling

Past Perfect
I had peeled
you had peeled
he/she/it had peeled
we had peeled
you had peeled
they had peeled

Future
I will peel
you will peel
he/she/it will peel
we will peel
you will peel
they will peel

Future Perfect
I will have peeled
you will have peeled
he/she/it will have peeled
we will have peeled
you will have peeled
they will have peeled

Future Continuous
I will be peeling
you will be peeling
he/she/it will be peeling
we will be peeling
you will be peeling
they will be peeling

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been peeling
you have been peeling
he/she/it has been peeling
we have been peeling
you have been peeling
they have been peeling

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been peeling
you will have been peeling
he/she/it will have been peeling
we will have been peeling
you will have been peeling
they will have been peeling

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been peeling
you had been peeling
he/she/it had been peeling
we had been peeling
you had been peeling
they had been peeling

Conditional
I would peel
you would peel
he/she/it would peel
we would peel
you would peel
they would peel

Past Conditional
I would have peeled
you would have peeled
he/she/it would have peeled
we would have peeled
you would have peeled
they would have peeled

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

peel

To take the skin off something, usually a fruit or vegetable.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	Peel - British politician (1788-1850) Robert Peel, Sir Robert Peel
	2.	peel - the rind of a fruit or vegetable skin rind - the natural outer covering of food (usually removed before eating) edible fruit - edible reproductive body of a seed plant especially one having sweet flesh jacket - the outer skin of a potato banana peel, banana skin - the skin of a banana (especially when it is stripped off and discarded); "he slipped on a banana skin and almost fell" lemon peel, lemon rind - the rind of a lemon orange peel, orange rind - the rind of an orange
Verb	1.	peel - strip the skin off; "pare apples" pare, skin peel off - peel off the outer layer of something strip - remove the surface from; "strip wood" flay - strip the skin off
	2.	peel - come off in flakes or thin small pieces; "The paint in my house is peeling off" flake off, flake, peel off chip, chip off, break away, break off, come off - break off (a piece from a whole); "Her tooth chipped"
	3.	peel - get undressed; "please don't undress in front of everybody!"; "She strips in front of strangers every night for a living" discase, disrobe, strip down, uncase, undress, strip, unclothe take off - remove clothes; "take off your shirt--it's very hot in here" undress, disinvest, divest, strip - remove (someone's or one's own) clothes; "The nurse quickly undressed the accident victim"; "She divested herself of her outdoor clothes"; "He disinvested himself of his garments" take off - take away or remove; "Take that weight off me!"

peel

noun

1. rind, skin, peeling, epicarp, exocarp grated lemon peel

verb

1. skin, scale, strip, pare, shuck, flake off, decorticate (rare), take the skin or rind off She sat down and began peeling potatoes.

peel something off take off, remove, discard, strip off, cast off, doff, divest yourself of He began to peel off his shirt.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

peel

noun

The outer covering of a fruit:

rind, skin.

verb

To remove the skin of:

decorticate, pare, scale, skin, strip.

Translations

فشرقِشْر قِشْرَةٌقِشْرَهيَتَقَشَّر

loupatslupkakůraloupat se

skrælleskalskalleskræl

Schale schälen abblättern Pelle pellen

ξεφλουδίζω φλούδα

pelar piel cáscara corteza desconcharse

kuorikuorialeipälapio

peler pelure écorce éplucher épluchure

gulitikorica

gyümölcshéjhéjlepattogzik

afhÿîa, flysjabörkur, hÿîiflagna

buccia sbucciare pelare scorza scrostarsi

皮皮をむく

껍질껍질을 벗기다

lupenosnuluptinuskustiskustiskutenos

lobītlobītiesmizamizotnomizot

schil schillen

skrelle pille skall skrell

obrać skórka

casca descascar

кожура очищать от кожуры чистить

lúpať sašúpať

lupinalupitiluščiti se

skalskala

เปลือกปอกเปลือก

soymaksoyulmakkabuk mevye kabuğupul pul dökülmek

bóc vỏvỏ

剥皮果皮脱落

peel

[piːl]

A. N (= skin) → piel f; [of citrus fruit] → cáscara f; [of apple, potato] → piel f; (removed) [of citrus fruit] → cáscaras fpl; [of apple, potato] → peladuras fpl, mondas fpl

B. VT [+ fruit, vegetable] → pelar; [+ layer of paper] → quitar
to peel the bark from a tree → descortezar un árbol, quitar la corteza de un árbol

C. VI [wallpaper] → despegarse, desprenderse; [paint] → desconcharse; [skin, person] → pelarse
I'm peeling → me estoy pelando

peel away

A. VI + ADV [paint] → desconcharse; [wallpaper] → despegarse, desprenderse; [skin] → pelarse

B. VT + ADV → quitar, despegar

peel back VT + ADV → quitar, despegar

peel off

A. VT + ADV [+ layer, paper] → quitar, despegar; [+ clothes] → quitarse rápidamente or lisamente

B. VI + ADV

1. (= separate) → separarse (from de) (= leave formation) [vehicle, plane] → despegarse
he peeled off to the east → se desvió hacia el este

2. → desnudarse rápidamente

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

peel

[ˈpiːl]

n [potato, apple] → pelure f, épluchure f; [orange, lemon] → écorce f

vt [+ fruit] → peler, éplucher; [+ potatoes] → éplucher
Shall I peel the potatoes? → J'épluche les pommes de terre?

[paint] → s'écailler

[wallpaper] → se décoller

[nose, arms, hands, back] → peler
My nose is peeling → Mon nez pèle.
The skin on my back is peeling → Mon dos pèle.

peel away

(= come off) [sticker, label, paper] → se décoller

[supporters] → faire défection

vt sep [+ sticker, paper, layer] → décoller; [+ skin] → enlever

peel back

vt sep → décoller

peel off

vt sep [+ sticker, label] → décoller

peel

n → Schale f

vt → schälen ? eye

vi (wallpaper) → sich lösen; (paint) → abblättern; (skin, person) → sich schälen or pellen (inf); the paper was peeling off the wall → die Tapete löste sich von der Wand

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

peel

[piːl]

1. n (gen) → buccia; (of orange, lemon) → scorza, buccia

2. vt (fruit) → sbucciare; (shrimps) → sgusciare
to keep one's eyes peeled (fam) → stare all'erta

3. vi (wallpaper) → staccarsi; (paint) → scrostarsi; (skin) → squamarsi; (person) → spellarsi

peel away

1. vi + adv (skin) → squamarsi; (paint) → scrostarsi; (wallpaper) → staccarsi

2. vt + adv (gen) → staccare; (paint) → scrostare; (wrapper) → togliere

peel back vt + adv → togliere, levare

peel off

1. vt + adv

a. = peel away 2

b. (clothes) → togliersi, sfilarsi

2. vi + adv = peel away 1

peel

(piːl) verb

1. to take off the skin or outer covering of (a fruit or vegetable). She peeled the potatoes.

2. to take off or come off in small pieces. The paint is beginning to peel (off).

noun

the skin of certain fruits, especially oranges, lemons etc.

ˈpeeler noun

a tool etc that peels (something). a potato-peeler.

ˈpeelings noun plural

the strips or pieces of skin peeled off an apple, potato etc. potato peelings.

peel

→ قِشْرَةٌ, يُقَشِّرُ loupat, slupka skræl, skrælle Schale, schälen ξεφλουδίζω, φλούδα pelar, piel kuori, kuoria peler, pelure guliti, korica buccia, sbucciare 皮, 皮をむく 껍질, 껍질을 벗기다 schil, schillen skall, skrelle obrać, skórka casca, descascar кожура, очищать от кожуры skal, skala เปลือก, ปอกเปลือก mevye kabuğu, soymak bóc vỏ, vỏ 剥皮, 果皮

peel

n. [fruits] cáscara, hollejo, corteza;

v. pelar; [to shed skin] despellejarse, pelarse.

peel

n (derm, procedure) exfoliación f; chemical — exfoliación química; vi (skin) descamarse (form), pelarse, despellejarse (fam)

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References in classic literature ?

George gathered wood and made a fire, and Harris and I started to peel the potatoes.

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If that's not the boy, sir, who had the orange, and threw this bit of peel upon the staircase, I'll eat my head, and his too.'

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Now the only thing they drank was "horse's neck"--a long, soft, cool drink with an apple peel or an orange peel floating in it.

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He grasped the hatchet quickly to peel off the bark and shape the wood.

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Micawber provokingly left off; and began to peel the lemons that had been under my directions set before him, together with all the other appliances he used in making punch.

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Pickwick took another, just to see whether there was any orange peel in the punch, because orange peel always disagreed with him; and finding that there was not, Mr.

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Then he drew out the claws of the eagle's feet that had remained in his flesh, and put the peel of one of the golden apples on the wound, and in one moment it was healed and well again.

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"If you stay there a while it will all peel off of itself." And he gave a dismal smile.

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One winter's day the wife stood under the tree to peel some apples, and as she was peeling them, she cut her finger, and the blood fell on the snow.

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Peel's late conduct on the Catholic question, innocent of future gold-fields, and of that gorgeous plutocracy which has so nobly exalted the necessities of genteel life.

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So I used to come out at night after they'd gone to bed, and feel about in the dark for bits of biscuit, or sangwitches that you'd left in the office, or even pieces of orange peel to put into cold water and make believe it was wine.

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I well remember one morning, as we were on the stand waiting for a fare, that a young man, carrying a heavy portmanteau, trod on a piece of orange peel which lay on the pavement, and fell down with great force.

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