flay

American  

[fley] / fleɪ /

verb (used with object)

1. to strip off the skin or outer covering of.

2. to criticize or scold with scathing severity.

   Synonyms:

   upbraid, excoriate, castigate

3. to deprive or strip of money or property.

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flay British  

/ fleɪ /

verb

1. to strip off the skin or outer covering of, esp by whipping; skin

2. to attack with savage criticism

3. to strip of money or goods, esp by cheating or extortion

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Usage

What does flay mean? To flay is to strip off the skin or outer covering of something. Flay is most commonly used metaphorically to refer to severely criticizing someone. It can also mean to cheat or deprive someone of money or property.The original, literal meaning of flay typically referred to removing the skin of an animal. Flay can also refer to removing the skin of a human, especially as a form of torture by whipping. Neither of its literal senses are commonly used anymore, except perhaps in fiction.Example: People on social media love to flay celebrities who are caught doing the opposite of what they always tell other people to do.

Other Word Forms

• flayer noun
• unflayed adjective

Etymology

Origin of flay

before 900; Middle English flen, Old English flēan; cognate with Middle Dutch vlaen, Old Norse flā

Example Sentences

From then on, he curbed his aggressive instincts to support Gill, but could not resist one straight flay off Bashir for six.

From BBC • Jun. 20, 2025

Then they flay it—not filet, flay—meaning remove the skin.

From Salon • Dec. 7, 2023

This isn’t to criticize the family, but to flay CNN, which should have reported the factual context of the household’s inflation experience.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 10, 2021

Having talked his way into an exclusive interview with billionaire Cornelius Vanderbilt Jr., Wilder proceeded to flay him:

From Washington Post • Apr. 27, 2021

It was a delicate process because I didn't want to flay the skin off my fingers.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir