exfoliate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to throw off in scales, splinters, etc.
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to remove the surface of (a bone, the skin, etc.) in scales or laminae.
verb (used without object)
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to throw off scales or flakes; peel off in thin fragments.
The bark of some trees exfoliates.
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Geology.
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to split or swell into a scaly aggregate, as certain minerals when heated.
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to separate into rudely concentric layers or sheets, as certain rocks during weathering.
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Medicine/Medical. to separate and come off in scales, as scaling skin or any structure separating in flakes.
verb
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(tr) to wash (a part of the body) with a granular cosmetic preparation in order to remove dead cells from the skin's surface
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(of bark, skin, etc) to peel off in (layers, flakes, or scales)
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(intr) (of rocks or minerals) to shed the thin outermost layer because of weathering or heating
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(of some minerals, esp mica) to split or cause to split into thin flakes
a factory to exfoliate vermiculite
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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exfoliatesimple
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exfoliatessimple
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have exfoliatedperfect
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has exfoliatedperfect
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am exfoliatingprogressive
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are exfoliatingprogressive
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is exfoliatingprogressive
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have been exfoliatingperfect progressive
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has been exfoliatingperfect progressive
Past
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exfoliatedsimple
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had exfoliatedperfect
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was exfoliatingprogressive
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were exfoliatingprogressive
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had been exfoliatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of exfoliate
First recorded in 1605–15; from Late Latin exfoliātus, past participle of exfoliāre “to strip off leaves”; see origin at ex- 1, foliate
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Exfoliate, moisturise and SPF every day are the standard in most people's skincare routine.
From BBC • Jun. 22, 2022
Exfoliate, eks-fō′li-āt, v.i. and v.t. to come off, or send off, in scales.—n.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
