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peel

 - 15 dictionary results

peel

1[peel]
–verb (used with object)
1. to strip (something) of its skin, rind, bark, etc.: to peel an orange.
2. to strip (the skin, rind, bark, paint, etc.) from something: to peel paint from a car.
3. Croquet. to cause (another player's ball) to go through a wicket.
–verb (used without object)
4. (of skin, bark, paint, etc.) to come off; become separated.
5. to lose the skin, rind, bark, paint, etc.
6. Informal. to undress.
7. Metallurgy. (of a malleable iron casting) to lose, or tend to lose, the outer layer.
–noun
8. the skin or rind of a fruit, vegetable, etc.
9. Metallurgy. the presence of a brittle outer layer on a malleable iron casting.
10. peel off,
a. to remove (the skin, bark, etc.) or be removed: The old skin peeled off.
b. Aeronautics. to leave a flying formation of aircraft with a banking turn, usually from one end of an echelon.
c. Informal. to turn off or leave (a road): We peeled off the highway onto a dirt road.
d. to remove (clothing) in a swift upward or downward motion.
11. keep one's eyes peeled, Informal. to watch closely or carefully; be alert: Keep your eyes peeled for a gas station.

Origin:
bef. 1100; ME pelen, OE pilian to strip, skin < L pilāre to remove hair, deriv. of pilus hair. See pill 2


peel⋅a⋅ble, adjective


1. Peel, pare agree in meaning to remove the skin or rind from something. Peel means to pull or strip off the natural external covering or protection of something: to peel an orange, a potato. Pare is used of trimming off chips, flakes, or superficial parts from something, as well as of cutting off the skin or rind: to pare the nails; to pare a potato.

peel

2[peel]
–noun
1. a shovellike implement for putting bread, pies, etc., into the oven or taking them out.
2. Metallurgy. a long, shovellike iron tool for charging an open-hearth furnace.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME pele < MF < L pāla spade. See palette

peel

3[peel]
–noun
a small fortified tower for residence or for use during an attack, common in the border counties of England and Scotland in the 16th century.
Also, pele.


Origin:
1250–1300; ME pele fortress < AF pel stockade, MF pel stake < L pālus stake. See pale 2

Peel

[peel]
–noun
1. Sir Robert, 1788–1850, British political leader: founder of the London constabulary; prime minister 1834–35; 1841–46.
2. a seaport on W Isle of Man: castle; resort. 3295.
3. a river in N Yukon Territory and NW Northwest Territories, Canada, flowing E and N to the Mackenzie River. 425 mi. (684 km) long.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To peel
peel 1   (pēl)   
n.  
  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.

  3. Slang To remove one's clothes; undress.

Phrasal Verb(s):
peel off
  1. To leave flight formation in order to land or make a dive. Used of an aircraft.

  2. To leave or depart.


[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).]
peel 2   (pēl)   
n.  
  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.]
peel 3   (pēl)   
n.  A fortified house or tower of a kind constructed in the borderland of Scotland and England in the 16th century.

[Middle English pel, stake, small castle, from Anglo-Norman, stockade, variant of Old French, stake, from Latin pālus; see pag- in Indo-European roots.]
Peel   (pēl)   
British politician. As home secretary (1822-1827 and 1828-1830) he established the London police force (1829) and helped pass the Catholic Emancipation Act (1829). He later served as prime minister (1834-1835 and 1841-1846).
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Main Entry:  peel
Part of Speech:  n
Definition:  See baker's peel
Dictionary.com's 21st Century Lexicon
Copyright © 2003-2009 Dictionary.com, LLC
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Slang Dictionary
peel

  1. in.
    to strip off one's clothing. : I had to peel for my physical examination.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

peel  (v.)
"to strip off," developed from O.E. pilian "to peel," and O.Fr. pillier, both from L. pilare "to strip of hair," from pilus "hair." Probably also infl. by L. pellis "skin, hide." The noun is 1583, from earlier pill, pile (1388), from the verb.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1peel
Pronunciation: 'pEl
Function: transitive verb
1 : to strip off an outer layer of
2 : to remove (asskin or a blemish) by stripping peel intransitive senses
1 : to come off in sheets or scales peels>
2 : tolose an outer layer (as of skin) peeling>

Main Entry: 2peel
Function: noun
: the surgical removal of skin imperfections (as blemishes and wrinkles) by the application of a caustic chemical andespecially an acid to the skin called also chemical peel
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Computing Dictionary

PEEL
Used to implement version of Emacs on PRIME computers.

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing, © 1993-2007 Denis Howe
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Idioms & Phrases

peel

In addition to the idiom beginning with peel, also see keep one's eyes open (peeled).

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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