DEFINITIONS
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flay

[ fley ]
/ fleɪ /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR flay ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to strip off the skin or outer covering of.
to criticize or scold with scathing severity.
to deprive or strip of money or property.

Content related to flay

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Words related to flay

excoriate, scalp, peel, skin, castigate, censure, upbraid, rebuke, reprove

Words nearby flay

flax, flax kit, flaxen, flaxman, flaxseed, flay, flaysome, fld, fld., fldxt, flea

Origin of flay

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

OTHER WORDS FROM flay

flay·er, nounun·flayed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for flayed

British Dictionary definitions for flayed

flay
/ (fleɪ) /

verb (tr)

to strip off the skin or outer covering of, esp by whipping; skin
to attack with savage criticism
to strip of money or goods, esp by cheating or extortion

Derived forms of flay

flayer, noun

Word Origin for flay

Old English flēan; related to Old Norse flā to peel, Lithuanian pl e šti to tear
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012